Before you let: the landlord's checklist

Before you advertise

• Check you're allowed to let

  If the property has a mortgage, you need your lender's permission. If it's leasehold, read the lease. Tell your insurer too: an ordinary home policy usually won't cover a let property.

  Official guidance: Landlord responsibilities

• See whether it needs a licence

  A house shared by five or more people from more than one household needs an HMO licence. Some councils also license smaller shared houses, or every rented home in certain streets. Ask your council before you advertise.

  Official guidance: House in multiple occupation licence

• Get an Energy Performance Certificate

  You need a valid certificate, and the property must be rated E or better unless it has a registered exemption. A certificate lasts ten years.

  Official guidance: Energy Performance Certificates

• Advertise one rent

  The advert must give the rent, and you can't ask for or accept more than that. You can't rule out tenants because they have children or receive benefits.

  Official guidance: Guide to the Renters' Rights Act

Before your tenant moves in

• Right to Rent check

  Check that every adult who'll live there has the right to rent in England, before the tenancy starts.

  Official guidance: Check your tenant's right to rent

• Gas safety

  If the property has gas, a Gas Safe registered engineer must check it every year. Give your tenant a copy of the record before they move in.

  Official guidance: HSE: landlords' responsibility for gas safety

• Electrical safety

  The wiring must be inspected and tested at least every five years by a qualified person. Give your tenant a copy of the report.

  Official guidance: Electrical safety standards

• Smoke and carbon monoxide alarms

  A smoke alarm on every floor that's lived on, and a carbon monoxide alarm in any room with a fixed fuel-burning appliance such as a boiler or a fire. Gas cookers don't count. Check they work on the day the tenancy starts.

  Official guidance: Smoke and carbon monoxide alarms

• A written tenancy agreement

  Every new tenancy needs a written agreement that includes the information the law sets out.

  Official guidance: A guide for landlords

• Rent in advance and the deposit

  You can take no more than one month's rent in advance, and only once the agreement is signed. A deposit can be up to five weeks' rent, or six if the yearly rent is £50,000 or more. Protect it in a government-approved scheme within 30 days and give your tenant the scheme's details.

  Official guidance: Deposit protection schemes and landlords

• An inventory

  The law doesn't ask for one. But a dated inventory with photos is what settles an argument about the deposit later.

While the tenancy runs

• Repairs and safety

  Keep the home safe and free from health hazards. The council can inspect it and order repairs. Deal with damp and mould quickly, and keep a record of what you did.

  Official guidance: Landlord responsibilities

• Renew the certificates

  Gas every year. Electrics every five years. The energy certificate every ten.

• Rent increases

  Once a year at most, using the official notice (Form 4A) with at least two months' warning.

  Official guidance: Rent increases

• Pets

  If your tenant asks to keep a pet, reply in writing within 28 days. You can't refuse without a good reason.

  Official guidance: If a tenant wants a pet

• Ending the tenancy

  You need one of the legal grounds and the right notice. Speak to a solicitor before you serve one.

Coming up, and money

• Register your property

  Landlords in Greater Manchester must register each rented property with the government between 15 May and 14 August 2027. It costs £65 per property a year.

  Official guidance: Register your rental property

• Join the landlord ombudsman

  Every private landlord will have to join the new ombudsman. The government expects that to be required in 2028.

  Official guidance: Implementation roadmap

• Tax

  You may have to pay Income Tax on your rental income, less your day-to-day running costs. An accountant will tell you what you can claim.

  Official guidance: Paying tax on rental income

How we help

For landlords we manage, we check the gas safety record, the electrical report, the energy certificate and the alarms before a tenant moves in, and tell you if the property needs a licence. Anything missing, we arrange at cost. After that we remind you before each certificate runs out. See what's included.

More on the changes of 2026 and 2027 is in our guide to the Renters' Rights Act.