If you are thinking of selling your tenanted residential property it is important to understand your options and the legal requirements if you want to sell with vacant possession.
The rules on terminating assured shorthold tenancies are changing on 1 May 2026 under the Renters’ Rights Act 2025 (the RRA 2025). Below is a helpful guide of what you need to know.
You can currently still serve notice under s21 Housing Act 1988 (HA 1988). This is known as a no-fault eviction notice and allows you to take possession without needing to give a reason. A s21 notice can be served provided you meet certain legal requirements beforehand and sufficient time has passed since the term of the tenancy began. The notice must be valid to rely on the transitional provisions. Please contact us for advice on service of a valid s21 notice.
If the rent under the tenant agreement is payable weekly or monthly, the deadline to serve a s21 notice will be 30 April 2026, and you will need to give at least 2 months’ notice. You also need to allow time for service of the notice. If rent is paid less frequently, the deadline is earlier as more notice is required.
We would also need to allow time to serve the notice in advance of the deadline.
If the tenant fails to vacate after the notice period has expired, proceedings will need to be issued. The deadline for issuing proceedings based on a s21 notice is 31 July 2026, or six months from the date of service of the notice if this is sooner than the final deadline.
If the tenant does not raise a defence, you should be able to rely on the accelerated possession procedure which is quicker, but you can still be waiting 1 – 4 months for a possession order. You then need to apply for a bailiff appointment, or a writ of possession from the High Court to enforce the order.
The RRA 2025 abolishes s21 notices entirely, so no-fault evictions will no longer be possible. If you want possession after this date, you must serve notice under s8 HA 1988. One of the new grounds being introduced allows a landlord to serve notice on a tenant to terminate their tenancy where they intend to sell the property or grant a lease for a term of more than 21 years.
There are certain requirements that need to be met:
1. The landlord must give the tenant at least 4 months’ notice.
2. The landlord cannot ask the tenant to leave within the first 12 months of a tenancy being granted.
3. The earliest the notice can be served is 8 months after the tenancy began.
Landlords will be required to provide a witness statement evidencing their intentions. This could include information from an estate agent about their terms for selling the property and perhaps a market appraisal as to the sale price. If the property is owned by a company, then board resolutions will be needed.
This ground can only be relied on where any deposit taken has been protected correctly, and the related prescribed information was sent to the tenant within the required time limit. At present, you will not have to prove compliance with other regulations as you currently do with a s21 notice, but this may change in the future.
Once a notice has been served relying on this ground, a landlord will be unable to re-let or market the property for re-letting, or grant a licence to occupy (i.e. AirBnB) for a restricted period of 12 months from either:
a) the date given in the notice as the earliest date on which proceedings can be started (usually 4 months after the notice has been served), if the tenant moves out upon expiry of the notice; or
b) the date on which a claim form or particulars of claim are filed with court, where possession proceedings have been issued.
If a landlord acts in breach of this, they will be committing a criminal offence and could face fines of up to £40,000 if the local authority is satisfied the landlord did not have a genuine intention to sell the property.
If proceedings are needed because the tenant does not vacate, you can no longer rely on the accelerated possession procedure. Depending on where the property is, you could be waiting 3 – 9 months for a possession order. As before, you will also need to apply for a bailiff appointment, or a writ of possession from the High Court to enforce the order.