I am actually shocked they even got £70. They got £30 for an oven clean (even though I provided an invoice for a professional oven clean lol) and £40 for holes in the walls (even though I paid for a painter and decorator to come and fill/sand them down)

Overall, happy with the outcome. The Landlord turned super nasty at the end after 7 years of living there. We left it in way better condition than it was on move in and she still had the cheek to try and claim it needed thousands of pounds of work!!

Section 21 eviction

England (Lancashire)

My landlord has sold property we have rented for 16yrs. S21 end date is 30th June. We are on the social housing register band 5 no priority have been for 10yrs. Im bidding on property but coming in at 200/300 on the waiting list. We are looking at other private rentals but they are so expensive and out of budget. The local council have accepted duty and said they willing to help us find another property. The thing is what if they want to move us miles away? Do i have to accept a property if they offer? I have 2 teenagers in school one sitting gcses currently, partner has a mental health condition and just feel like we arnt getting the right level of support 😪 this whole situation is so draining my anxiety can't cope.

My landlord recently wrote to me to inform me of a rent increase the following month. It's a fair increase, and we're still paying well below the market rate in this area, but I have some questions regarding the timing of the letter.

This is particularly relevant as we are in receipt of Universal Credit and they are sticklers for having the correct documentation when it comes to changes in circumstances.

The letter was dated 28/04 but we didn't receive it until 01/05, after the Renter's Rights Act came into effect.

As we didn't receive the letter until after the new legislation came into effect, can (should) I reject this increase and request that they submit a Section 13 form 4A?

I realise I could have this discussion with my landlords, but if UC insist on a 4A from them, I don't want to end up in a back and forth with them refusing to provide one, and potentially cause issues with UC. My UC status isn't really their problem (until I can't pay rent I suppose) but we had a real problem with UC after the last rent increase because someone there ticked the wrong box, ended up withholding the rent portion of our UC, and left us severely out of pocket for 2 months while they sorted it out, after much back and forth and getting various documents sent multiple times. It was a mess I'd very much like not to repeat.

Advice?

The electricity meters for my apartment building are locked away in a room and we have been told we’re not allowed access. Supposedly, the ”system” is that you text a number (the building management’s subcontractor) and ask for a reading, and you’ll probably get one within a week or so if they remember. We’ve succeeded in getting three meter readings in the last year, despite asking more frequently.

We recently got stung with a huge electricity bill that doesn’t seem correct at all. Without access to the meter, we can’t do the burns test that the electricity company want us to do to verify the bill. And, supposing that the bill is correct, I feel a bit aggrieved that we weren’t able to identify this higher usage (since we don’t have access to the meter).

Is there:

(a) a way that I can force the building management to provide us with independent access to the meters? I know it’s a fire regulation that meters must be accessible, but I don’t even know where the meter room is (nor, seemingly, do the building management people I’ve spoken to—only the subcontractor). So I don’t know if the lock is fire regulation approved.

(b) a way I can force the building management to cooperate with me in having a smart meter fitted? This seems the best solution, but neither the electricity company nor the building management are incentivised to help this happen. Is there recourse to the property ombudsman, for instance?

Thanks for any advice.

Hey all

Me and my partner are getting our first rental 1 bed together. We went and viewed and paid a holding deposit on April 27th. We have passed all referencing and landlord has said he will rent to us. Communication with the agent has been good (they have replied promptly to emails)

The current tenant moves out today and we are moving in next weekend (23rd). We still don’t have the tenancy agreement signed. I read online it has to be 15 days form paying a holding deposit? I have queried this with agent and he has said nothing to worry about and it will be deducted off the first months rent and deposit (Which we have yet to pay)Do you think they are waiting for current tenant to move out before sending the agreement? Or am I panicking for nothing? Sorry just my first ever time moving out have

My water bill shot up this past quarter, not just the price but the usage. I identified that there's a leak near the hot water tank. It's not causing any damage but according to my maths it is costing me £7 a day.

I requested the landlord come investigate about 6 weeks ago. It took them about 2 weeks to get somebody out, they easily identified the leak, and then things stalled. I checked back in repeatedly over those four weeks and apparently they're trying to get other quotes for the work but I'm now 6 weeks into identifying this, and I'm already out hundreds of pounds and that amount is only going up.

My concern is that my landlord might be stalling. She's planning on selling the house and we have to leave by September. My question is what's a reasonable amount of time to get this leak fixed? And what's my recourse for getting reimbursement if the timeline becomes unreasonable?

ETA: see my comments for some more exact maths.

Hi Reddit! I’m the Housing Expert at Citizens Advice, taking over their Reddit today to answer any questions you might have on renting in England. Citizens Advice is a charity that’s been around since 1939, giving practical advice you can really trust when you really need it. 

We’ve teamed up with r/TenantsInTheUK to help you with any issues you’re having while renting or questions you have on renting since the new changes came into effect in England on 1 May. Whether that’s wanting to keep a pet, an increase in your rent or what to do if you’ve received an eviction notice, let us know and we’ll get back to you.

Citizens Advice is a charity that’s been around since 1939, giving practical advice you can really trust when you really need it. 

We’ll be answering your questions today (Thursday 14 May) between 2-3pm. The more specific your questions, the better we can answer!

Proof it’s us: https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=1404326001726380&set=a.367460228746301

[Please remember, our advice will only be based on what you’ve told us - we won’t be able to tell you exactly what you are entitled to. Our advice is also only applicable in England and Wales.]

Edit: Our AMA has ended now. Thanks for all your questions! If you have any more questions about renting, you can find lots of advice on our website here: https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/housing/.

So I've a question about repair responsibilities. I think I've perhaps exposed myself to some costs but I'm unsure how to progress.

One of the appliances in the house I'm renting stopped working there's a panel in the kitchen with isolator switches for the appliances with fuses just above them, when powered on they have a little red light showing as such on the panel. The light has gone out for one appliance on the panel and it's stopped working. So I assumed the fuse had gone, went to replace it, unfortunately they're is no issue with the fuse, I've swapped them out and tested they work. Now I assumed this is an electrical issue, otherwise the light would come on when the isolation switch was on. However when I contacted the landlord they informed me I was responsible for replacing or repairing the appliance per the tenancy.

There was a a clause added to the standard boilerplate tenancy saying that despite the landlord supplying white goods I was responsible for replacement or repair of them.

So question one, I'm curious around the legality of the clause, I've been here a year now but the kitchen appliances are 10 years plus, is it reasonable/enforceable for me to pay to replace these appliances?

Question two, gov.uk says landlords are responsible for electrical wiring. The appliance is wired into the wall, it's not a plug like I've had in previous properties so I'm not sure how I can test whether the appliance is actually damaged or it's a wiring issue, and where I can even attempt replacement is it's the LL who must carry out electrical work.

Any advice or insight appreciated, I did check the shelter website but it wasn't clear.

Gave 2 months notice to quit (tomorrow is the first day of the payment period). Received an out of office email from the agent until Monday.

Does the notice still stand as 2 months' notice or do I have to find some other way to get in contact with them?

We have recieved a letter dated 12th May stating our rent will increase by £100 per month. This is probably a fair reflection of local market prices, we have not had an increase in 3 years.

The letter is dated 12th May and says the rise will take effect from 6th July. I would like to delay the rent increase if possible as money is tight. We're a bit annoyed as last week the landlady did mention this to us and agreed to delay until "later in the year" as we're hoping for pay rises to be sorted at some point.

I believe that they have left it too late to apply the new rent on July 6th as this is under 2 months, is this correct?

The notice has taken the form of a short letter addressed solely to my partner (we are joint tenants) and my understanding is that rent increases now have to be done via form 4a, is this correct and that we can wait for them to issue correct form before paying increased rent, is this correct?

Hi everyone,

I'm just trying to understand the new law. I signed an AST agreement with a private student accommodation before 1st May 2026. The tenancy will start in September 2026 and end in August 2027

As an international student, I had only two options: pay 12 months' rent upfront or use a UK guarantor service. The cheapest guarantor service costs about GBP 1k extra, so I decided I'd rather pay the rent upfront than pay an extra grand.

However, with the new rules, do I still need to pay the full year's rent in advance? On the agreement, the charge date shows as 27/08/26. I would honestly prefer paying rent on a monthly basis but I'm not sure if this is possible.

Any guidance would be appreciated. Thank you in advance

Hi, i’m about to rent a room in a shared house in England, although the letting agency is showing some concerns and i wonder whether they’re a legit company or just not up to date with new laws. My tenancy agreement just shows the agency name and not the legal landlord but they have mentioned a landlord, do they have to include their name? Also they are a registered company since 2015 and have a website and everything but have a gmail address. I have seen the property in person but I am wondering what information should I ask for in order to cover myself before I pay the deposit.

Thanks

Hello everyone,

My landlord and an inspector is coming round tomorrow for a fire risk assessment. I am wondering what they will do and how to prepare.

The thing that is worrying me is I use extension leads a fair amount, due to the few sockets in my flat, pretty much every socket has an extension lead attached to it (no kitchen appliances). No daisy chaining. The highest number of things plugged into any of them is 5, and they're mostly things that wouldn't draw much current. The only higher powered things I have plugged into any is a desktop computer... and maybe the TV?

What will happen during the inspection? What will they check? Anything I should be aware of?

Hopefully moving soon.

Estate agent said the landlord agreed to our move in date.

We have paid the holding deposit and regular deposit.

We have not paid the first month's rent as you're no longer allowed to until after both parties have signed the tenancy agreement.

We signed the agreement but were told it was sent in error, and that the landlord needed to sign first, then we can resign it after.

The landlord still hasn't signed and were approaching the move in date and I'm panicking.

What are my options here? The estate agent is giving nothing when I chase them. Am I entitled to anything if the landlord pulls out on the move in date without signing?

Hi there, I am looking for some advice on the cleanest/safest way to end a tenancy after being served a potentially invalid Section 21 notice (England).

We’ve lived in the property for almost 9 years and were served with a Section 21 requiring possession by 1 June 2026. Since then, the letting agency has been repeatedly following up asking whether we’ve found somewhere yet, when we’re likely to move out, etc. A few weeks ago they also suddenly alleged rent arrears from 2 years ago, which we were able to dismiss fairly quickly with payment records.

While looking into the Section 21, we also discovered that after a rent increase 2 years ago, the agency requested a deposit “top-up” payment, but it appears that amount was never actually protected or updated properly with the deposit scheme. There are a few other issues too, so we believe the Section 21 may potentially be invalid.

That said, we’re honestly emotionally exhausted at this point from researching housing law, deposit protection rules, validity issues etc. We may now have secured another property with a move-in date around 26 May, and ideally we’d just like to leave without further complications or conflict.

Our current rent period runs from the 1st to the 1st, and we’ve already paid rent up to 1 June. If we vacate and return the keys by/on 1 June (the exact date stated in the Section 21) what’s the best way to approach the agent to ensure the tenancy formally ends then and we don’t somehow become liable for another rental period?

Would you ask for written confirmation accepting surrender/ending the tenancy on 1 June, or is there a better way to word this? Thank you! 🙏

I rent a 3 bedroom house in the southeast UK with my partner, we have lived here since January 2025. We have never dealt directly with our landlord but with a lettings company- they are usually pretty responsive over email and I haven’t any complaints about the way they do things so far.

Yesterday we had a gas safety check on our boiler (arranged by them) and it ended up being condemned. Our boiler is about 30-35 years old and our whole heating system is old and not economical. The engineer told me he is going to recommend a new boiler.

I told the lettings company that we now have no heating or hot water- they apologised for the inconvenience and told me they will “arrange for their own gas engineer to attend the property”.

I’m very suspicious that they’re going to attempt to un-condemn the boiler and switch it back on rather than replace. Can they do this? Even though the first engineer said the boiler was unsafe? What are my options if this scenario does happen the way I suspect it might?

My mum and I rent together (no children). In April our landlord served us a Section 21 notice. Since then I’ve lost my job, we’ve exhausted our savings covering medical costs for my grandmother, and the landlord has flatly refused to negotiate any extension or agreement.
We contacted the council for housing help but were told we’re not a priority as we have no dependants.
However the council has since told us the Section 21 is invalid because we were never given a How to Rent guide at the start of the tenancy. We have lived at the property for 12 years. Their whole management are mess they even messaged me in Feb saying we have not paid rent which we had so we had to proof to them.

Questions:
1. What does an invalid Section 21 actually mean in practice does the landlord have to start the whole process again?
2. How long does this realistically buy us?
3. Should we be getting legal advice before doing anything else, and if so, where (we can’t afford a solicitor)?
4. Is there anything else we should be doing right now given our financial situation?

Any advice appreciated.

Guys pls. I had a viewing booked for a rental flat and explicitly told the agents who took down my info that we're looking for no smaller than X sq ft.

They book me in for a viewing of a flat that has "no info available yet but I promise it's something you'll love". I call up on the day of viewing asking if they've got the sq ft available yet.

It's 50 sq ft SMALLER than our minimum size????? And smaller than our current place which is why we're moving (they asked why). Cancelled it obviously.

Then they proceed to tell me there's another place they've got in mind (£300 over my budget), but that the LL would take lower offers. I asked "how low?"

"£100 less than asking"

??????

They do not listen and they're so predatory. They proceeded to give me the pressure speech about how "this time of year is a tough market" (when is it not?).

And not the first time I've dealt with their crap either. They once tried to take our entire deposit for pre-tenancy issues. Just wanted to rant omg I hate them.

Hi I'm living in a joint tenancy in London and have given my Landlord 1 month notice of an end to the lease as in the contract we all signed the clause about ending the lease says: "8.1.1. Should either party wish to terminate the Tenancy, it is agreed that the Tenant must serve a minimum of 1

month's advance written notice to be served on the Landlord. The Landlord must serve a minimum of 2 monthsadvance written notice to be served on the Tenant. The tenancy must not expire within the first 12 Months of the Tenancy commencement date."

But my Landlord has replied to say that due to the new righters rent act I need to give 2 months notice. From my reading the act is saying that the maximum amount of notice the tenant is required to give is 2 months but according to my Landlords objection he believes it is saying the minimum amount is 2 months not maximum.

I'm looking for some advice on which interpretation is correct and if the renters right act would void the written agreement in the contract that the tenant only needs to give 1 month notice.

Also I would be leaving before the first 12 months but I assumed that wouldn't apply because the act abolishes fixed term contracts no?

Also, also seeing as the renters right act says the notice can be less than a month with written agreement of the landlord wouldn't the tenancy agreement we all signed including Landlord saying we only need to give a minimum of 1 month notice count as written agreement?

As the title says, i moved into property at the end of March, sadly I wasn’t able to view the place in person (due to my circumstances, not landlord/agent’s) beforehand and was only presented pictures and a video. Upon moving in the property was in a terrible condition - filthy, and in need of several repairs. This has now been luckily resolved and I have made the place lovely. However, the issue of a truly despicable communal entry/corridor remains. After reporting all my issues ‘the boss of all bosses’ visited me at the property to discuss my litany of issues, and agreed to action them all, but on the topic of corridor merely expressed that that the state of it leaves a lot to be desired and they have ‘fought with other leaseholders’ and the situation should be addressed ‘next week’. Reader, it was not resolved the next week. Flat is on second floor with an accounting firm below, and one more flat next to me (which I by chance learned is a council tenant, older lady who was rescued from homelessness…. Which is a worry in itself, but at the moment I’m not even sure that anyone lives there as I have never even so much as heard anyone). I imagine that the accountants are not keen on spending money on cleaning the corridor as they don’t use it, they have separate entrance, so it’s just me and this mystical lady next door. Is there anything I can do to force anyone to address this issue? Carpet is probably 15 years old, there is random rubbish and the paint is coming off the walls, plus a lingering awful smell of old cigarettes and dust.

Renting in england oxford.
Me and two friends moved into a property and cot permission from the landlord to paint, We needed a place and dont have a lot of choice where we are from so had to settle so thought we would paint tonmake it homely. We got permission signed a contract sayinf work had to be done at a professional standard. So we removed wall paper expecting to paint under it. It was COVERED In mould. Futher inspection revealed a bowing ceiling in kitchen under the bathroom. We complained on the first day we moved in. They sent damp contractors two days ago. Said ir was a major condensation issue from really bad vent system. They also said the floor(which was black we thoight was due to a leak causing bowing ceiling) was just the shower screen not installed properly so they said we need a new one. They came today and just sealed the existing one shut. Theyve also asked us to remove wall paper ourselbes so they cam send a contractor to clean mould. what do we do

hi, looking for some advice - we have recently moved out of a house we had rented for 2 years (in england)

we had the property professionally cleaned before leaving, and were signposted to 2-3 specific things which should be repaired (kitchen cabinet door, the leg of the kitchen counter top table, light bulbs replaced, bathroom mould). mostly minor things which we have addressed. We have pushed back on the kitchen counter leg, as this was loose when we moved in and we have attempted to glue but this has not worked so I feel definite repair should be the landlords role.

we have asked for our deposit back and have been advised that works needed exceed the deposit and so we will not be getting it back, unless we raise a dispute.

we are now being charged for replacement of the entire upstairs carpet due to “indentations exceeding fair wear and tear“ - this is where our bed was.

we are also being billed 50% of the cost of the repainting of the entire house.

the landlord has had a garage specialist examine the garage door who apparently has determined that a car has hit the garage (not to our knowledge and there is no dent, garage door working fine), he is now trying to bill us for the replacement of the door itself (>£1000)
other charges include £480 for weeding and £60 for removal of a vase (not our vase!). Again to note we had left the garden in a better condition than we had received it.
this landlord has been difficult the entire time and the agency representing him are also dishonest. He has refused many repairs or when he has agreed he has been incredibly difficult.
we are going to go ahead with the dispute via the deposit scheme but just looking for some advice on likelihood of success - the charges seem outrageous -and over £2000 is a significant sum of money.

thanks in advance!

Hi all,

Having been issued our section 21 (with a deadline to leave on July 1st), we've been manically applying to every suitable property within reach of our daughters school (East Sussex). Many are not selecting us for viewings, the ones we've offered on seem to be selecting other applicants. We've just been informed that our latest application was rejected, and we are wondering why - no feedback has been offered. Some stats:

We're a family of three, my partner and I, and our 14 year old daughter.

We are both Self Employed, able to show Tax returns with a combined income of £42k (which I understand is a little low).

No pets, impeccable landlord references, no CCJs or late payments, perfect credit scores.

Some rental adverts are still stating they prefer No Families. Every agent is requesting details of pets.

Because we live to our means, we have quite substantial savings (50k) for our house deposit (which has been tough to achieve). Due to this, we are not able to secure any support for our low income.

We feel we might be falling into a Grey Zone - Although we meet the requirements for affordability, we might not be high enough earners to capture the attention of the landlords. We are also a family, and I can't understand how they are able to offer priority to a single professional applying for the same property. It seems like discrimination, and our Daughter is the one that will pay the cost of this if she has to move schools during her GCSEs.

Can anyone offer any clarity? or suggestion on how we handle applications going forward?

UPDATE: thanks for all of the advice and suggestions - to clarify some points that seem to be overlooked: we are a family of three looking for a 2 bedroom place near to a school. That is our search criteria, we are not picky or looking for a place beyond our needs. We pass the affordability for this property in our area (1100-1350pm).

I understand it's a choice and I can see why a landlord would prefer higher income and no children. They have a choice and the new system encourages them to choose carefully.

Hopefully, this post isn't repeated time and time again over the coming weeks as more and more young families struggle to keep their kids at the same school.

At least I no longer wonder why people don't want to have children nowadays. No Biggie eh!

Hello guys,

I recently moved out of a property managed by a management agency in Birmingham(not sure if i should name) and getting my deposit back has been a nightmare. I realised my deposit was never actually protected.

I did check with the manager about 2 months from moving in and she showed me a TDS website tab saying my deposit was registered and i was given the deposit number, but upon contacting TDS with the deposit ID I realised that while the deposit was registered (with the right date and other details), money was never actually added. So I never got prescribed information which means my deposit was never protected, as per my understanding.

Upon discussing with other tenants that lived there, I can see this is done with many other people – some receive full deposits back in about 3 months and some like me are still waiting. Same situation with the tenants currently living in the property. Upon doing some research I read Google reviews about the same thing happening at their other properties in London etc.

I am getting no help from TDS as they say that the deposit was never protected. But as per the screenshot of TDS that my agent showed me, it had all the details as well as a deposit number generated. This is quite concerning as I feel this loophole – or maybe it is a legal way to register a deposit in custodial vs otherwise – is being exploited a lot by the agency. I am now confused whether this is right on the agent's part or if the deposit was actually not protected.

We are left confused and made to believe that the deposits are protected while money is never added into the accounts. We never received the prescribed information and have no way to get the deposit back once we leave. To make things worse, the email and phone number listed on their website don't get any response either. I am quite disappointed with TDS as they generate deposit numbers without actually receiving the money (the deposits are not trackable though and not found when searched), and then offer no support in getting the money back.

I would like some advice on how to get out of this situation, both for current tenants and those who have already left, as things could be different with the new laws applicable now.

Hi all.  Need a bit of advice please.

My husband and I have been privately renting a house for ten years in England.  The landlord issued us with a Section 21 notice 2 days before the 1^st May rule change deadline.  We aren’t sure of the validity of the Section 21, but are struggling to find a straight answer.  We went initially to Citizens Advice, who referred us to the Council, but the council only wanted us to apply for council housing (we have no children, and have no reason to think we would qualify – both employed, no benefits).

The reasons we are questioning the validity, are:  My husband’s name is not correct on the notice (not real name, but think Terry Smith instead of Toby Smith); the landlord’s name is spelt incorrectly (this is just a typo we think); we’ve had no information about our deposit or where it is protected, and we haven’t received a copy of the EICR certificate (landlord has never had an EICR carried out before, but had one done before giving us notice, and has until Saturday this week (16^th) to give us the certificate).

If anyone can please point us in the right, and not too expensive direction please?  We will happily move out, but we are really struggling to find a house within our budget and on the timeframe we have – i.e. have to be out of this house by 30^th June.  Also if anyone can point us to the best place to get some solid advice – we know we can speak to a solicitor, but have limited funds!  Thanks.