{"id":6107177,"date":"2026-02-09T18:50:51","date_gmt":"2026-02-09T17:50:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.buyassociationgroup.com\/en-gb\/?p=6107177"},"modified":"2026-02-09T18:51:18","modified_gmt":"2026-02-09T17:51:18","slug":"renters-rights-act-brings-an-end-to-fixed-term-tenancies-asts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.buyassociationgroup.com\/en-gb\/news\/renters-rights-act-brings-an-end-to-fixed-term-tenancies-asts\/","title":{"rendered":"Renters\u2019 Rights Act brings an end to fixed-term tenancies (ASTs)"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>So, what are the new periodic tenancies and how do they work?<\/h2>\n<p>In one of the biggest upheavals of the rental market in a generation, assured shorthold tenancies (ASTs) will be abolished in England from May 1, 2026, under the Renters\u2019 Rights Act and replaced with a single system of rolling periodic agreements. There will no longer be any fixed end dates, Section 21 no-fault evictions will be scrapped, and all possession must use statutory grounds and go through the court system. Landlords will, though, still be able to recover property and increase rents, but control shifts from contract expiry to legal process.<\/p>\n<p>Below is an overview of the main key changes.<\/p>\n<h2>Fixed terms ended<\/h2>\n<p>Six- and twelve-month ASTs abolished.<\/p>\n<p>A tenancy will start and continue indefinitely until notice is served. There is no expiry point and no renewals.<\/p>\n<p>In practice, that means:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>no guaranteed end date<br \/>\n\u2022 tenancy rolls forward continuously<br \/>\n\u2022 possession is not linked to contract expiry<br \/>\n\u2022 statute governs the end of the tenancy (WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The default relationship is open-ended.<\/p>\n<h2>Existing tenancies convert automatically<\/h2>\n<p>The reform applies to current lets as well as new ones.<\/p>\n<p>When the Act takes effect:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>all existing ASTs will convert to periodic<br \/>\n\u2022 any remaining fixed months are overridden<br \/>\n\u2022 Section 21 ends immediately<br \/>\n\u2022 the new framework applies from day one<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Older contracts do not preserve fixed terms beyond implementation. (THIS IS NOT VERY CLEAR)<\/p>\n<h2>Section 21 disappears<\/h2>\n<p>\u201cNo-fault\u201d evictions banned.<\/p>\n<p>All possession claims must run through the court system using revised Section 8 grounds. There is no quick route to regain a property once Section 21 ends.<\/p>\n<p>Landlords must rely on grounds including:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>intention to sell property<br \/>\n\u2022 landlord or family occupation<br \/>\n\u2022 serious rent arrears<br \/>\n\u2022 anti-social behaviour<br \/>\n\u2022 breach of agreement<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Possession remains available, but it becomes procedural. Timing depends on statutory notice and court process rather than contract expiry.<\/p>\n<h2>Tenants gain mobility<\/h2>\n<p>Tenants can leave mid-tenancy by giving two months\u2019 notice.<\/p>\n<p>For landlords, this creates:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>less predictable vacancy timing<br \/>\n\u2022 shorter guaranteed income blocks<br \/>\n\u2022 greater turnover exposure<br \/>\n\u2022 tighter cashflow planning<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Income stability depends more on occupancy than contract length.<\/p>\n<h2>Rent increases move to a statutory cycle<\/h2>\n<p>With no renewals, rent reviews are formalised.<\/p>\n<p>Increases use of Section 13 notices, which are limited to once per year, and must give at least two months\u2019 notice. Tenants can challenge an increase through the First-tier Tribunal, which determines the market rent. Other rent review mechanisms are no longer permitted.<\/p>\n<p>The effect:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>fixed annual reviews that can be challenged via tribunal<br \/>\n\u2022 slower reaction to fast market changes<br \/>\n\u2022 greater emphasis on timing<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Rent setting becomes a scheduled statutory process.<\/p>\n<h2>Operational impact<\/h2>\n<p>The system removes the sign-renew-reset cycle.<\/p>\n<p>There are no renewal checkpoints to trigger administration. Management becomes continuous:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>compliance must be tracked on a rolling basis<br \/>\n\u2022 inspections are scheduled by policy, not contract date<br \/>\n\u2022 rent reviews follow calendar timing<br \/>\n\u2022 possession planning is legal, not contractual<br \/>\n\u2022 tenant engagement is ongoing<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Landlords cannot rely on contract milestones to force management moments.<\/p>\n<h2>Student tenancies<\/h2>\n<p>Most private student lets fall within the assured tenancy system and will move into the periodic framework.<\/p>\n<p>The Act introduces a specific possession ground for full-time student accommodation so landlords can recover property in line with the academic year. This ground must be declared at the start of the tenancy and is designed to protect the September turnover model used in the student market. (IS THIS RIGHT?- DOUBLE-CHECK)<\/p>\n<p>Purpose-built student accommodation remains outside the assured tenancy regime.<\/p>\n<h2>Potential benefits<\/h2>\n<p>Some landlords may see:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>longer average tenant stays<br \/>\n\u2022 reduced churn costs<br \/>\n\u2022 fewer renewal admin cycles<br \/>\n\u2022 steadier occupancy<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Long-term tenant portfolios are likely to adapt more easily than high turnover strategies.<\/p>\n<h2>Key risks<\/h2>\n<p>The main concerns are predictability and control:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>no guaranteed end date<br \/>\n\u2022 reliance on legal possession routes<br \/>\n\u2022 mid-cycle exits<br \/>\n\u2022 slower rent adjustment<br \/>\n\u2022 exposure to court delay<br \/>\n\u2022 reduced contractual leverage<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Landlords dependent on fixed-term certainty will feel the impact of the changes most.<\/p>\n<h2>Structural reset<\/h2>\n<p>The reform removes the fixed-term tenancy model and replaces it with a fully periodic system governed by statute. Landlords can still let property, recover possession and raise rents, but they must do so through statutory processes instead of relying on fixed contract end dates.<\/p>\n<p>The practical effect is a shift in how tenancies are managed. Income forecasting, exit timing and tenant retention become more important because there is no built-in contract breakpoint. The period before May 2026 is the preparation window for operating under those new rules.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>So, what are the new periodic tenancies and how do they work? In one of the biggest upheavals of the rental market in a generation, assured shorthold tenancies (ASTs) will be abolished in England from May 1, 2026, under the Renters\u2019 Rights Act and replaced with a single system of rolling periodic agreements. There will<a class=\"excerpt-read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.buyassociationgroup.com\/en-gb\/news\/renters-rights-act-brings-an-end-to-fixed-term-tenancies-asts\/\" title=\"ReadRenters\u2019 Rights Act brings an end to fixed-term tenancies (ASTs)\">&#8230; Read more &raquo;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4233,"featured_media":14046,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[179,2,766],"tags":[787],"class_list":["post-6107177","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-expert-advice","category-buy-to-let-landlords","category-uk-rental-market","tag-periodic-tenancies"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.buyassociationgroup.com\/en-gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6107177","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.buyassociationgroup.com\/en-gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.buyassociationgroup.com\/en-gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.buyassociationgroup.com\/en-gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4233"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.buyassociationgroup.com\/en-gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6107177"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.buyassociationgroup.com\/en-gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6107177\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6107180,"href":"https:\/\/www.buyassociationgroup.com\/en-gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6107177\/revisions\/6107180"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.buyassociationgroup.com\/en-gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14046"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.buyassociationgroup.com\/en-gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6107177"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.buyassociationgroup.com\/en-gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6107177"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.buyassociationgroup.com\/en-gb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6107177"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}