Renters’ Rights Act: what we all need to watch for from May – Rudolf

This timing in itself could create real issues for transactions agreed well before that date but completing after it.

If a buyer made an offer in late December 2025, average transaction times suggest completion is likely to fall after 1 May 2026, meaning advisers and conveyancers will be advising under one legal position while completing under another, which increases the risk of confusion unless this change is understood and factored in early.

For mortgage advisers, this matters because client expectations are often set at offer stage. For conveyancers, it doesn’t just affect buy-to-let (BTL) instructions, based on affordability and risk, and later in the year, registration as a landlord and maintaining a Decent Homes Standard, but more widely for clients buying long leases it also affects how long leases are reviewed, how risks are reported and how lender requirements are challenged or accepted.

The end of AST risk for long leases

One of the most important legal consequences of the act is the removal of the long-standing Housing Act issue that meant long residential leases could become ASTs if ground rent exceeded £250 per year, which in turn created additional possession rights and alarmed lenders.

Sponsored

Finding opportunity in your local first-time buyer market

Sponsored by Pepper Money

To manage this risk, lenders often required deeds of variation to insert mortgage protection clauses into leases, not because the lease was otherwise defective, but purely to deal with the tenancy risk created by the Housing Act.

From 1 May 2026, ASTs will no longer exist, and this specific risk will fall away, meaning lenders should no longer need deeds of variation solely to prevent a long lease from being treated as an AST.

This is a meaningful shift for conveyancing firms, as it removes a frequent source of delay and cost that often felt hard to justify to buyers and sellers alike.

When deeds of variation will still be needed

It is important to be clear that this change does not remove the need for all deeds of variation, and advisers should be careful not to oversimplify the message when speaking to clients.

Where ground rent escalation clauses lead to rent levels that are unreasonable or clearly unaffordable, a deed of variation may still be required, because this remains a real affordability and lending issue, separate from the tenancy status of the lease.

Conveyancers will still need to review ground rent terms carefully and report concerns to lenders, but the reason for doing so will change, moving away from Housing Act risk and focusing more directly on affordability and marketability.

Pushing back on outdated lender requirements

A key issue for conveyancing firms will be how to respond if lenders continue to request deeds of variation for mortgage protection clauses that are no longer legally required once ASTs are abolished.

Firms will need the confidence and the backing to push back, where appropriate, particularly where the only reason for the request is linked to a risk that will no longer exist from May.

This will require clear communication between conveyancers and advisers, so advisers understand why a requirement is being challenged and can explain this calmly to clients who may already be anxious about delays.

Keeping lender instructions aligned with the law

There is also a practical systems issue, because conveyancers rely heavily on lender handbook instructions, and problems will arise if those instructions lag behind the legislation.

I have been speaking to lenders about updating their UK Finance Handbook instructions to reflect the changes brought by the Renters’ Rights Act.

Why this matters beyond landlords and tenants

While the Renters’ Rights Act is rightly seen as a major change for the private rental sector, its effects go well beyond landlords and tenants, reaching into advice, lending decisions and conveyancing processes.

For advisers, understanding these changes helps manage client expectations and potentially avoids unnecessary panic when legal issues arise, while for conveyancers, it provides the basis to challenge outdated requirements and keep transactions moving.

As the start date approaches, the focus for all parties should be on clarity, communication and consistency, so a significant series of changes leads to smoother transactions rather than new uncertainty.