Three Months of Open-Ended Tenancies: What the Renters’ Rights Act Has Done to Your Check-Out Process

The Renters’ Rights Act 2025 came into force on 1 May 2026, and three months on, the practical effect on the end of a tenancy is becoming clear. Section 21 “no fault” evictions are gone, and every assured tenancy in England is now a rolling periodic tenancy from day one — there is no fixed term to count down to, and no guaranteed end date to plan a check-out around.

The end of the predictable diary

Under the old fixed-term system, agents and landlords could plan a check-out weeks in advance: the tenancy had a known end date, and everyone diarised around it. That predictability has gone. A tenant now serves two months’ notice, and that notice must end on the last day of a rental period — not simply two months from the day it was given. In practice this compresses lead times, clusters move-outs unpredictably across the month, and shrinks the access windows available for a proper check-out inspection.

For inventory providers and agents, this means the days of a leisurely fortnight’s notice to book a check-out are largely over. Diaries need to flex, and access needs to be arranged quickly once notice is confirmed.

Longer tenancies put more weight on the check-in report

With tenancies now capable of running indefinitely, the gap between check-in and check-out can be years rather than months. That makes the original check-in report more important than ever — it is the only fixed reference point against which any deterioration, however gradual, can be measured.

“A detailed check-in report provides a baseline against which deterioration can be measured.” — Sandy Bastin, TDS

A thin or generic check-in report that was tolerable for a twelve-month fixed term becomes a genuine liability over a three- or five-year periodic tenancy, when the memory of the property’s original condition has long since faded for everyone involved.

Deposit compliance now blocks possession

The removal of Section 21 has also raised the stakes on deposit protection. Previously, a landlord who failed to protect a deposit or serve the prescribed information could usually still recover the property via Section 21, even if a deposit claim went against them. With Section 21 abolished, a landlord who has not properly protected the deposit and served prescribed information is now barred from using Section 8 possession grounds entirely — except for grounds 7A and 14 (serious anti-social behaviour and similar). Getting deposit protection right at the start of a tenancy is no longer just about avoiding a penalty; it now directly affects a landlord’s ability to regain possession at all.

Rent in advance has also been capped at one month, removing another tool landlords previously used to reduce risk at the start of a tenancy.

What’s coming next

A Private Rented Sector Database is expected to begin rolling out from late 2026, with national landlord registration anticipated around 2027. Non-compliance penalties are expected to range from £7,000 to £40,000, adding a further layer of administrative obligation on top of the changes already in force.

Taken together, these changes make a well-documented check-in report and a properly managed deposit the two pillars a landlord’s position now rests on — there is far less room than before to rely on ending the tenancy cleanly if either is missing.