Landlord Responsibilities Explained: A Guide for Central London Landlords
Kevin Gold created on 5th October 2026
Whether you are a landlord or a tenant, you are granted several rights and take on specific responsibilities when you sign a rental agreement. As a landlord, you must be aware of these rights and responsibilities to ensure that you stay on the right side of the law and maintain a good relationship with your tenants, hopefully leading to a successful and profitable business.
In this article, we talk you through the legal duties you must follow, including updated legislation introduced in Phase 1 of the Renters’ Rights Act on 1 May 2026.
We also explain your rights if your tenant doesn’t stick to their side of the bargain.
If you own rental property in exclusive areas such as Mayfair and Soho, your typical tenants will expect high standards for all aspects of their property, including how any issues are managed. So, you may want to go above and beyond your legal responsibilities to ensure you keep your tenants happy.
Landlord Responsibilities
Landlords have the following legal responsibilities, even if they are not mentioned in the tenancy agreement:
Have the right mortgage
Landlords usually can’t let property on a ‘normal mortgage’, and instead require a specific buy-to-let mortgage instead. Check the rules your mortgage lender has in place and make sure you’re not breaking them by letting your property to tenants rather than living in it yourself.
Right To Rent Checks
Landlords must establish that their tenants have the right to rent in the UK. Landlords must ask their tenants for original documents that prove they are over 18 and have the right to live in the UK. Read more here about the acceptable right to rent documents, or check out our guide on how to check a tenants right to rent.
Conduct Tenant Referencing
As a landlord, you should also conduct tenant referencing to minimise the possibility of missed rent payments and ensure you have trustworthy people living in your property. Tenant referencing checks include credit checks, employer references, previous landlord references and potential guarantors for applicants who have no credit history.
Create an Inventory
To ensure that your property is left in the same condition at the end of the tenancy, it is important to create an inventory that evidences the property condition and the items that have been provided. Taking photos and videos of the property will help prevent any disputes around the property condition. The assured shorthold tenancy agreement should include who is responsible for the condition of the property.
Tenancy Deposits
Landlords must protect their tenant’s deposits in a Government-approved scheme and inform the tenants which tenancy deposit protection scheme they have used. Tenancy deposits must be returned at the end of the tenancy. Private landlords have a right to deduct money to cover damages but will need to prove the tenant was responsible, so it is wise to carry out an inventory at the start and end of the tenancy.
Tenancy deposits are capped at five weeks’ rent if the annual rent is below £50,000. If the yearly rental value exceeds this, landlords can ask for six weeks’ rent as a deposit.
Under the Renters’ Rights Act rules, landlords can only take one month’s rent in advance and rental bidding is strictly banned. This means that landlords must not charge more than the advertised rent, even if a tenant offers a higher rent to try and secure the tenancy.
Get The Right Insurance
As a landlord, having the right insurance will provide protection for you, your tenants and your property. If your tenant suffers an injury in your property or there is a fire, for example, having adequate insurance will cover any legal action or fire damage repairs.
There are different types of insurance policies for landlords but the more comprehensive your cover, the more peace of mind you will have. You can also take out landlord insurance that covers missed rent payments to ensure you do not suffer financial losses due to unpaid rent.
Start Of Tenancy Documentation
At the start of a new tenancy, landlords have legal obligations to provide their tenants with the following documents. Failure to do so could make it difficult to evict tenants if they fail to pay their rent or break the tenancy agreement in other ways.
Energy Performance Certificate: An EPC shows your property’s energy efficiency and is valid for ten years. Landlords must obtain one before they can market the property.
Gas Safety Certificate: You must have a gas safety check performed on your property every year by a gas safe engineer.
Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR): Landlords must have the rental property’s electrical installations inspected and tested by a ‘qualified’ and ‘competent’ person at least every five years.
Written Statement of Terms: From 1 May 2026, the How to Rent guide was withdrawn. Landlords were required to provide a Renters’ Rights Act Information Sheet 2026 to existing tenants by 1 May 2026. For new tenancies, landlords must now provide a Written Statement of Terms covering tenancy conditions. Read more about the rule changes in our Renters’ Rights Act 2026 Guide.
Landlords are responsible for ensuring that their property is safe and fit for human habitation. The following checks must be made before a tenant moves in, and landlords must check that the safety of the property is maintained throughout the tenancy.
Gas safety checks – Arrange gas safety checks every 12 months, a Gas Safe registered engineer must carry this out. This involves checking gas appliances are working safely.
EICR – Obtain an Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR) every five years. A qualified electrician should complete the report, checking that electrical installations are safe to be used.
Fire safe furniture – Ensure that all furniture and furnishings provided meet fire safety standards. Any sofas, cushions, chairs, or mattresses must carry the fire-resistant symbol.
Smoke and CO alarms – Ensure smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors are installed in the required rooms. The regulations stipulate that rooms with a coal fire or wood burning stove require a carbon monoxide alarm.
EPC – Obtain and share an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) with the tenant. This includes the energy efficiency ratings and recommendations for energy efficiency improvements. The EPC should be provided to a tenant when they move into the property.
Comply with MEES (minimum energy efficiency standards) regulations – The minimum EPC rating for privately rented tenancies should be grade ‘E’ but the government has announced a target to raise the minimum rating to ‘C’ by 2030. Failure to meet the minimum grade could lead to a hefty fine from the local authority.
Carry out fire safety risk assessments – Landlord are legally required to carry out fire risk assessments to identify and rectify any fire risks.
Protect your property against Legionnaires Disease – A landlord is responsible for minimising the risk of Legionella by taking actions such as replacing eroded pipework and ensuring any stored water is kept at the correct temperature.
Repairs And Maintenance
Landlords are responsible for repairs or maintenance work the tenant does not cause. These include any issues with the exterior and structure of the property and any problems with the water, gas and electricity supply that may make the property unfit for habitation, including heating. Landlords can find full details of their legal responsibilities for repairs and maintenance in the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985.
Once an issue is reported, landlords should carry out repairs within a reasonable timeframe. Awaab’s Law and the Decent Homes Standard are going to be extended to the private rented sector in the more distant future, which will introduce specific legal timeframes for fixing hazards such as damp and mould. The exact date for introducing these into the private rented sector has not yet been announced.
Licencing
If you rent a House in Multiple Occupation (HMO), you need to check the licencing requirements set out by your local authority. You may be subject to mandatory HMO licencing, a national requirement depending on the size of your property and your tenants’ relationships – for example, if you are renting to students.
Your local authority may require additional HMO licencing for properties in their local area that are not covered by the mandatory licencing rules. They may also call for selective licencing for non-HMO privately rented properties in the local area. You must check your local council’s website to verify the rules specific to your property.
Landlords will have to sign up for the PRS database, set to be rolled out from late 2026 on a phased, region-by-region basis. Registration will be mandatory for renting out or advertising a rental property. The database’s purpose is to improve landlord compliance and to support local council enforcement.
Marketing Your Property
Unless you choose to use a letting agent, you will need to market the property to find the right kind of tenants for your property. This includes everything from arranging professional photos, listing the property on online portals and conducting viewings of the property. There are many rental properties on the market in central London, so you will need to market your property effectively to attract good quality tenants.
Landlord Rights
Much of the information available relates to tenants’ rights, but landlords have rights too:
Right To Increase Rent
Landlords have the right to increase the rent but must abide by the rules set out in the tenancy agreement. The upcoming Renters’ Rights Act has changed the rent increase rules, including a restriction to only being allowed to increase rent once per year.
Rent increases must be initiated by completing a formal Section 13 notice and giving at least two months’ notice to tenants. If a tenant believes that the proposed increase is unfair, they have the right to contest it through a First-tier Tribunal and the Property Chamber will assess whether the rent increase is fair in comparison to local rents for similar properties.
Property Access Rights
If you are a landlord, then you have the right to access the property for essential maintenance/repairs and inspections but remember that your property is the tenant’s home whilst they live there. Therefore, don’t turn up unannounced – instead, seek permission and give adequate notice before visiting. Landlords should provide at least 24 hours’ notice to tenants if they wish to visit the property.
If there is a genuine emergency, landlords are permitted to access the property without obtaining permission.
Right to End a Tenancy and Regain Possession
This landscape has changed considerably under the Renters’ Rights Act 2025. Fixed term tenancies have been abolished, with all tenancies now periodic from day one. This means that it is no longer an option for landlords to wait until the end of a fixed-term contract to regain possession, as the contract continues rolling until it is legally ended.
Section 21 evictions ended on 1 May 2026, so “no-fault” evictions no longer exist. To regain possession, a landlord can only use a Section 8 eviction notice, citing the specific ground. The grounds include:
Ground 8 for rent arrears
Grounds 1 & 1A for landlord moving into the property/selling the property
Ground 11 for repeated late rent
Ground 12 for breach of terms
There are many more grounds which have been reformed under the Act, but these ones are the most commonly used.
Tenant Responsibilities
A tenant has several responsibilities to their landlord:
Pay Rent On Time
The tenant’s primary responsibility is to pay the rent on time.
Look After The Property
Tenants must act responsibly, take care of the property, and be considerate to neighbours.
Seek Permission
Tenants should always seek the landlord’s permission to make alterations to the home. They should also ask permission to take in a lodger and inform their landlord if they are away from the property for an extended period.
Rules around tenants’ rights to keep pets have changed under the Renters’ Rights Act. Tenants now have the right to request a pet, which should be done formally in writing. Landlords may not unreasonably refuse a pet and they must respond to pet requests within 28 days. Blanket pet bans are now illegal and the landlord must assess each request on individual merit.
Allow Access For Repairs And Maintenance
Tenants should allow their landlord to access the property to see if any repairs are required. They should also allow access to tradespeople to make repairs or for gas or electricity safety checks.
How Tenants End a Tenancy Now
Fixed-term assured tenancies no longer exist and all tenancies are periodic, rolling contracts from day one, as of 1 May 2026. If a tenant chooses to move out of the property, they can provide two months’ written notice at any time. They are no longer tied to waiting for a fixed-term to end.
Paying Bills
The tenant also has a responsibility to pay bills in most cases, and this should be written into the tenancy agreement. Utility bills and council tax payments will usually be payable by the tenant unless an alternative agreement is in place.
Tenant Rights
Tenants in the UK are very well protected. There is a lot of legislation to ensure that they are not taken advantage of or forced to live in dangerous accommodation.
Tenants have the right to live in the property for the time specified in the contract. Landlords cannot make their tenants move out before the end of the contract (unless they have breached the terms of the agreement). Tenants also have the right to live in their home peacefully, so the landlord must always give notice and receive the tenant’s permission before turning up at the property.
Tenant Fee Ban
Following the Tenant Fee Ban Act, it is now illegal for letting agents and landlords to charge certain fees to renters. For more information about what tenants can and can’t be charged for read our blog ‘The Letting Agent Fee Ban in the UK’.
Unlawful Discrimination
The Equality Act 2010 gives tenants the right not to be discriminated against during the rental or tenancy process. Discrimination laws were tightened under the Renters’ Rights Act 2025, making it illegal to have blanket bans for tenants with children or who receive benefits.
Any landlords found to use adverts that include discriminatory terms such as “no benefits” or “no children” can face legal action. All tenant applications must be assessed as individual cases.
What the Renters’ Rights Act 2025 Means for Landlords Now
We have covered some of the key Renters’ Rights Act 2025 changes earlier in this article, but this summary provides a broader and concise overview of the rules already introduced and the ones included in the next phases:
In force since 1 May 2026:
Section 21 abolished and all tenancies periodic from day one
Landlords must use Section 8 grounds to regain possession
Rent increases limited to once a year via a formal Section 13 notice
Tenants have a formal right to request a pet, and landlords must respond within 28 days
Blanket bans on tenants with children or on benefits are banned
Landlords are limited to one month’s rent in advance; rental bidding is banned
Future changes:
PRS Database and Landlord Ombudsman rolling out from late 2026
Awaab’s Law and Decent Homes Standard to be extended to the private rented sector (date not yet confirmed)
Can I sell my Marylebone rental flat while a tenant is living in it?
Yes. You can sell with the tenant in place, or you can seek possession under Ground 1A. Landlords generally cannot use that ground during the first 12 months of a tenancy. Many investors choose a tenanted sale, because buyers then pay for an existing rental income.
How do I work out the right rent increase for a flat in Fitzrovia or Maida Vale?
Compare your flat with similar homes that have recently let nearby. If a tenant challenges the increase, the First-tier Tribunal judges it against market rents for comparable properties. Size, condition, floor level, and transport links all shape that comparison. A current rental valuation gives you evidence before you serve the Section 13 notice.
How can I reduce the risk of rent arrears now that Section 21 has ended?
Thorough referencing remains your strongest protection. Credit checks, employer references, previous landlord references, and a guarantor where needed all lower the risk. Rent guarantee insurance adds a financial safety net. If arrears build up, Ground 8 still applies, but you must prove this ground of eviction is valid in court.
Can I refuse a pet request from a tenant in a flat?
You can refuse only with a good reason, and you must respond within 28 days. A head lease that prohibits pets is the most common valid reason in central London blocks. Blanket bans are illegal, so you must assess each request individually.
What penalties can landlords face for breaking the new rules?
Local councils enforce the rules through civil penalties, and the amount rises with the seriousness of the breach. A first breach under the Renters’ Rights Act can cost up to £7,000. Serious or repeated breaches can reach £40,000 or lead to prosecution.
Can I take a holding deposit to reserve a rental in Mayfair or Soho?
Yes, but the Tenant Fees Act 2019 caps a holding deposit at one week’s rent. Rental bidding is now banned, so you must reserve the property at the advertised rent, whatever other applicants offer. Agree the reservation terms in writing, including when the deposit is refunded or applied to the first rent payment.
Does the higher six-week deposit cap apply to many lets in central London?
It applies to any tenancy with annual rent above £50,000, which is roughly £4,167 a month. Many larger and prime homes in Mayfair, Marylebone, and St John’s Wood let above that level, so landlords there can ask for six weeks. Below the threshold, the cap stays at five weeks’ rent.
Should I use a letting agent now that the rules have changed?
Many landlords find a managing agent worthwhile, because compliance now covers possession grounds, written statements of terms, pet requests, and the forthcoming PRS database. An agent keeps documents current and serves notices correctly. Kubie Gold can provide a rental valuation and explain your management options for homes across Marylebone, Fitzrovia, and Camden.
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Kevin Gold
Kubie Gold Associates are an independent local firm of estate agents specialising in the Rental, Sale and Property Management of Residential Property in the North-West and Central London market
