Can a new landlord raise my rent? Your rights when the property changes hands

Your landlord sells the flat. An estate agent or the new owner emails you to introduce themselves — and the message ends with “we'll be reviewing the rent shortly”. It happens all the time, and it's the moment most renters discover that a change of landlord is much less of a change than it feels like.

The short answer

A new landlord cannot raise your rent simply because the property changed hands. They inherit your existing tenancy, your existing rent, your existing deposit protection, and your existing place in the Section 13 12-month cycle. Any rent increase they want has to follow the same statutory route — once every 12 months, two months' notice, prescribed form — counted from when the previous landlord last increased the rent, not from when the sale completed.

Your tenancy survives the sale

Under English property law, a tenancy is a property interest. When the freehold or leasehold of a let property is sold, the buyer takes it subject to any existing tenancies. The legal jargon is that the tenancy is “binding” on the new owner; in plain English, they buy a property with you and your existing contract in it.

This has a few practical consequences:

• Your rent figure is locked. The new landlord can't raise it just because they bought the place.
• Your notice rights continue. Section 21 has been abolished by the Renters' Rights Act 2024 — the new landlord can only seek possession on the same Section 8 grounds the old landlord had.
• Your deposit is still protected. Either the old landlord transfers the deposit to the new one, or returns it to you. Either way you should get fresh prescribed information within 30 days.
• Existing clauses still bind both sides. Break clauses, repair obligations, redecoration terms — all continue.

Section 13 still applies — and the clock doesn't reset

If the new landlord wants to increase the rent, they have to use Section 13 of the Housing Act 1988 in exactly the way the old landlord would have. The Renters' Rights Act 2024 hasn't carved out an exception for new owners.

That means:

• Two months' notice on the prescribed gov.uk form.
• Only once in any 12-month period — and the clock runs from when the previous Section 13 increase took effect, not from when the new landlord took over.
• The new rent must align with the start of a rental period (e.g. the 1st of the month if you pay on the 1st).

If the old landlord put the rent up in November 2025, the new landlord (whenever they bought) can't do another Section 13 increase that takes effect before November 2026. The sale changes nothing about that clock.

What to check when the landlord changes

Here's a checklist for the email or letter that tells you you've got a new landlord:

• Notice of assignment. A written notice identifying the new landlord, when the change took effect, and new payment details. You're entitled to confirmation of who the new landlord is so you can pay rent to the right person.
• New bank details — verified. Scam attempts targeting tenants with fake “new landlord, new account” emails are common. Phone the agent or write to the old landlord to confirm before changing payment instructions.
• Updated deposit prescribed information. Within 30 days. If you don't get it, your new landlord may have a deposit protection breach on their hands — see what to do if your landlord didn't protect your deposit.
• Gas safety, EICR, EPC. Ask for current copies. Some of these have lapsed during the sale process.
• The last Section 13 date. Ask the previous landlord or check your records. You'll need that date if the new landlord serves an early notice.

If they try to raise the rent immediately

The most common move by new landlords is a quick “the rent is going up to £X” email. Sometimes it's aggressive, sometimes it's framed as “just bringing it in line with market”. Either way, the legal position is the same.

You have three options:

1. Politely refuse. Reply that the existing tenancy terms continue, that any rent increase has to follow Section 13, and that the next Section 13 increase can't take effect before (date). Most landlords drop it at this point.
2. Negotiate. If the property has changed for the better (new boiler, fresh paint) you might be willing to discuss a modest increase by agreement at the next anniversary. You set the terms.
3. Apply to the First-tier Tribunal if they serve a defective Section 13 notice. Free, no solicitor, and under the RRA 2024 the tribunal can only confirm or lower the proposed rent — never raise it. Our tribunal application walkthrough covers it step by step.

For the full background on what the RRA 2024 changed, see our explainer on the Renters' Rights Act 2024. For the limits on any rent increase the new landlord might propose, read how much a landlord can increase rent in 2026 and what a Section 13 notice contains. And if you want a fast read on whether the new figure they propose is actually around market, run a free check at RentCharter.

Frequently asked questions