Since 1 May 2026 there is one lawful way to raise the rent on an assured tenancy in England: a notice under section 13 of the Housing Act 1988, on prescribed Form 4A, no more than once a year, taking effect no sooner than two months after service. Rent review clauses in old tenancy agreements no longer do the work. This guide walks the procedure, the tenant's right to challenge, and how to pitch an increase that stands.
The procedure, step by step
Once a year at most, counted from the last increase or the start of the tenancy.
Prescribed Form 4A, completed accurately: the current rent, the proposed rent, and the date it takes effect.
At least two months between service and the new rent starting.
The tenant may refer the notice to the First-tier Tribunal before the start date. The tribunal sets a market rent, and the outcome cannot exceed what you proposed, so the notice is your ceiling.
Until the notice takes effect, or the tribunal decides, the old rent remains payable.
Pitching an increase that survives
The tribunal's question is what the property would let for on the open market, so the honest preparation is evidence: what comparable properties actually achieve, not what a portal asks. Nottingham's average rent is a little over £1,000 a month and rising slowly, but averages hide streets, and a tribunal looks at yours. An increase pitched from real comparables usually goes unchallenged; one pitched from hope invites a referral that freezes it.
On our Fully Managed and Overseas landlord management services the annual appraisal does this work as routine: we review the rent against the market each year and serve the notice when a rise is justified, with the evidence already on file. General information, not advice on a particular tenancy.
