What Estate Agents and Property Managers Need to Know.
The Renters’ Rights Act 2025 came into force on 1st May 2026 and represents the biggest shake-up to the private rented sector in more than 30 years. For estate agents, letting agents, and property managers across England, the changes are significant, immediate, and non-negotiable.
If your business manages tenancies, handles enquiries, or supports landlords, this affects you directly. Here’s what you need to know, and how to stay on top of it.
What Has Changed as of 1st May 2026?
Section 21 ‘no-fault’ evictions have been abolished. Landlords can no longer use a Section 21 notice to end a tenancy. Instead, they must cite a specific, legally valid reason, known as a possession ground, using a Section 8 notice
Fixed-term Assured Shorthold Tenancies have been replaced with Assured Periodic Tenancies, rolling contracts that continue month by month until the landlord serves a valid possession notice or the tenant gives two months’ notice to leave. Rent can only be increased once per year via a Section 13 notice, and landlords cannot demand more than one month’s rent at a time or accept rent before a tenancy agreement is signed.
Discrimination against tenants with children or those receiving benefits is now illegal, bidding wars have been banned, and landlords must now consider and formally respond to any tenant request to keep a pet.
Landlords and their agents must also provide every existing tenant with the official Renters’ Rights Act Information Sheet by 31st May 2026 or risk a fine of up to £7,00.
What Does This Mean for Estate Agents and Property Managers?
The practical implications for letting agents and property managers are considerable. Overnight, your phone lines, inboxes, and front desks will get busier.
Tenants who have never questioned their rights before are now empowered with new ones, and they will have questions. Landlords who are unsure about compliance will turn to their agents for guidance. New enquiries from prospective tenants will need to be handled in line with the new rules from day one.
Beyond the immediate changes, further reforms are on the horizon, including a new Private Rented Sector Landlord Database rolling out from late 2026, a Private Rented Sector Ombudsman to handle complaints outside the court system, and the eventual introduction of Decent Homes Standards for the private sector. Each new phase brings another wave of queries, compliance requirements, and communication demands.
For letting agencies of any size, the message is clear: the volume of calls, questions, and client contact will only increase. The businesses that handle this well, that respond quickly, professionally, and consistently, will build trust and retain clients. Those that let calls go unanswered or struggle to keep up will lose business to competitors who don’t.
The Communication Challenge Nobody Is Talking About
Much of the industry conversation around the Renters’ Rights Act focuses on legal compliance. And rightly so. But there is a quieter operational challenge that is equally important: communication.
Think about the calls your office will receive in the coming weeks. Landlords wanting to understand what Section 21 abolition means for their property. Tenants asking about their new rights. Prospective tenants enquiring about pet policies. Applicants asking about rent in advance. These conversations require time, knowledge, and above all. Someone is available to answer.
If your team is stretched, or your office isn’t always staffed, those calls will go unanswered. And in the current climate, an unanswered call from a landlord who is nervous about compliance, or a tenant exercising new rights they’ve just learned about, is a relationship at risk.
How Orca Call Answering Helps Property Businesses Navigate the Change
This is exactly where Orca’s professional call answering service makes a real difference.
At Orca, we provide 24/7 call answering for estate agents, letting agents, and property management companies across the UK. Our dedicated PAs answer every call in your business name, following your instructions, seamlessly, as if they’re sitting right there in your office. Whether it’s an overflow call during a busy compliance period, an out-of-hours enquiry from a concerned landlord, or a new tenant calling to understand their rights, we make sure no call goes unanswered.
With the Renters’ Rights Act bringing a wave of new communication demands to the property sector, professional call answering isn’t just a convenience; it’s a competitive advantage. Businesses that respond quickly and professionally will stand out. Those that don’t will lose clients to those that do.
Orca also offers diary management and live chat handling, meaning your entire front-of-house communications can be managed in one place, freeing your team to focus on the complex compliance work that actually requires their expertise.
We’ve worked with property businesses for over 15 years. We understand the sector, we understand the pressure, and we’re ready to help you through one of its most significant periods of change.
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