Fact Sheet: Discrimination in the rental market (England)

The first phase of the Renters’ Rights Act 2025 has been in force since 1 May 2026, but local regulation is continuing to develop alongside it. Councils across England are consulting on new selective licensing schemes and planning controls for Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs), creating further checks, costs, and responsibilities for agents and landlords.

Rent pressures are real, but controlling the price of a scarce product does not create more of it. Rent controls can protect some tenants in the short term, but they do not address the shortage of homes that drives high rents. They can also weaken investment, reduce the number of properties available and make it harder for people seeking a new tenancy to find a suitable home. Evidence from schemes implemented around the world backs Propertymark’s opposition to rent controls and work to challenge and reshape the policy in Scotland.

Major changes to the financial rights of married and cohabiting couples when relationships end are being considered by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ). Proposed reforms cover divorce and dissolution, cohabitants who separate, and inheritance when an unmarried partner dies without a will. A clearer framework is welcome, but courts must consider housing needs, individual circumstances, and each person’s contribution.

The UK Government intends to begin a regional rollout of a Private Rented Sector (PRS) Database in England from late 2026. Its legal framework is already in the Renters’ Rights Act 2025; but questions remain about how the system will work, what information users must provide, and how much time agents and landlords will have to prepare. The final design must reflect how agencies operate to avoid adding a significant new layer of data entry, checks, and liability to every instruction.