The Private Rented Sector database: What landlords need to know about registration

The Renters' Rights Act is bringing some of the biggest changes to the rental market in a generation, and one of the least talked about is the creation of a new private rented sector database.

For landlords in England, registration will soon become a legal requirement. Every landlord letting property under an assured or regulated tenancy will need to register themselves and each of their rental properties, pay an annual fee and keep their information up to date.

While registration doesn't begin until 15th December 2026, the rollout is being phased by region and the information required goes well beyond basic contact details. Landlords will need to provide information about their properties, tenants, licences and compliance documents, including gas safety records, electrical certificates and EPCs. Getting organised now will make the process much easier when your area's registration window opens.

What the database is

The private rented sector database is a single government record of who lets property in England and which properties they let. The requirement is in two parts: if you're a landlord of an assured or regulated tenancy, you must register yourself and each of your properties through the service.

In practice, that means a landlord record covering you, or the organisation you let through, and a separate property record for each home you let. A landlord with one flat makes one of each. A portfolio landlord makes one landlord record and a property record for every let property. Each landlord and each property will carry its own unique identifier, which will later have to appear on lettings adverts.

The database has three purposes:

• For landlords, registering your property lets you show you are complying with the rules.
• For local councils, the service will be an important tool for enforcement, helping housing officers identify and tackle poor practice.
• For tenants, in future they will be able to use the service to check whether a landlord is compliant with key legal requirements. Not everything will be visible: the government will publish a list of the information the public can access at a later stage.

Registration is not a one-off exercise. You'll need to renew your registration each year, so the database is best thought of as a standing record to maintain rather than a form to complete once.

Who it applies to

If you are the landlord of an assured or regulated tenancy in England, you must register yourself and each of your properties through the service. That covers the great majority of private lettings.

The requirement reaches beyond individual owners. Organisations such as limited companies, partnerships and trusts register as organisational landlords. They provide details including the type of legal entity, a Companies House registration number where applicable and, for a trust, the lead trustee's details. If a property is held by a company, the registration should reflect the company as the landlord. Registering in your own name when the title sits elsewhere creates problems that are better avoided than corrected.

Some people register on a landlord's behalf: someone holding a power of attorney, a personal representative of a deceased person's estate, a court-appointed deputy, a receiver or a mortgagee, among others. They will need to say so, and supply certified or sealed evidence of their authority, such as the power of attorney itself or the grant of probate.

There are two important limits on the requirement.

Supported exempt accommodation is excluded. You won't need to register if you're a landlord of supported exempt accommodation as defined in the Supported Housing (Regulatory Oversight) Act 2023.

Vacant properties are not yet included. For now, only properties that are currently let, or that become let during the rollout period, need to be registered. Under future legislation, unoccupied properties will need to be registered before they are marketed for let. Until then, landlords with vacant properties should wait for further guidance.

Using a letting agent does not transfer the duty. Landlords are responsible for starting and ending the registration process. Your agent or property manager can provide certain information on your behalf, but you remain responsible for providing all required information. The government will publish guidance for agents and property managers on exactly what they can do before the service launches.

When you will need to act

The service does not open everywhere at once. To avoid bottlenecks, the government is staggering when properties in each region must be registered. The requirement begins in a different region each month, and once your region opens you have a three-month window to register.

Your deadline depends on where the property is, not where you live. For example, if you live in London but your rental property is in Kent, you'll need to meet the South East deadline. Landlords with properties in several regions will therefore face several deadlines.

The deadline matters because of what follows it. Once it has passed, councils in the region can begin enforcement. By 14th November 2027, every landlord actively letting property in England will need to be registered.

We will confirm the opening date for your region with you directly, so the timetable does not depend on you watching the calendar.

Individual landlords will be asked for their name, date of birth, residential address, telephone number and email address.

Organisational landlords provide the organisation's name, its type of legal entity, an address (which cannot be a PO Box), and contact details. They also provide the details of the person making the entry and of a nominated contact. A Companies House or charity number should be included where one exists. Without a Companies House number, the names, dates of birth and addresses of all directors, trustees, partners or members of the governing body are required.

About each property

For every property you let, you will be asked for:

• The property itself: the address, ownership type, property type, the number of bedrooms and whether it is currently let.
• Who is involved: the landlord's name, a correspondence address in England and Wales and an email address. You will also need the name and email address of any freeholder, superior landlord or property manager.
• The tenancy: the number of occupants and households, any HMO, additional or selective licence (with licence numbers if available), and whether the property is let furnished, part furnished or unfurnished.
• The rent: the rent charged, how often it is paid, and whether it includes any utilities.

Health and safety documents

This is where landlords are most likely to be caught out, because you will be uploading the documents themselves:

• Gas: where the property has a gas supply, a copy of the gas safety record and its issue date.
• Electrical: a copy of the Electrical Installation Condition Report or Electrical Installation Certificate, with its expiry date.
• Energy performance: where a valid EPC had to be given to the current tenant, a copy of the most recent one. If that EPC has since expired, you will need the date the current tenancy started. If the rating falls below the minimum energy efficiency standard, you will need to state whether a MEES exemption is registered and, if so, which type.

An expired certificate discovered on the day you sit down to register can hold up the whole process. Checking dates now gives you time to arrange renewals before your region opens.

If you need help registering or renewing once the service is live, Hamptons will be on hand to help you.

The cost

There is an annual £65 registration fee per property, and you will need to renew your registration each year. The fee is set per property, so a landlord with five let properties pays five fees, on first registration and again at each renewal.

The government says the fee balances fairness and sustainability for landlords against the cost of running the service and tackling non-compliance. The fee also helps fund councils to find and act on breaches of the Renters' Rights Act 2025. For compliant landlords, that is the point: the cost of registration supports enforcement against those who undercut the market by ignoring the rules.

Why this matters beyond the paperwork

Registration will become part of how property is let

At first, only properties that are already let need to be registered. That will change. Under future legislation, unoccupied properties will need to be registered before they are marketed for let. Landlords and letting agents will also need to include the landlord and property registration numbers on adverts. The government will publish further guidance before this comes in.

When it does, registration becomes a precondition of letting a property rather than something that follows it. Landlords already registered and compliant will be able to market their rental properties without delay.

Tenants will be able to check

Prospective landlords will also need to register in future, and tenants will be able to see whether their landlord, or a prospective landlord, has registered. The government's aim is to give tenants more confidence that a landlord is genuine and following the rules.

For a well-run portfolio, this is an advantage. The government says the database will help good landlords show their standards while stopping rogue landlords undercutting them. Increasingly, a current registration will be part of what tenants expect to see.

Councils will use it to enforce

Councils will use the information to spot rogue landlords and act sooner. Once your region's deadline has passed, they can start enforcement, and landlords who have not registered risk a fine.

Because each registration is renewed annually, enforcement does not stop once you have registered. A lapsed renewal, or a certificate that has expired without being replaced, can leave a once-compliant landlord exposed.

Penalties

Registration will be a legal requirement, and landlords who don't complete it risk a fine.

Enforcement follows the regional timetable. Once a region's three-month window closes, its councils can begin enforcement against landlords with unregistered properties. In practice, the deadline for your region is the date by which every let property you own there should be on the database.

The obligation continues after you register. Registration must be renewed each year, so a renewal missed after a first registration can leave a landlord out of compliance again.

The government has not set out the size of fines in its landlord guidance on the service. Details of how councils will enforce are expected in further GOV.UK guidance before and during the rollout.

What we suggest you do now

Registration does not open until 15th December 2026, and for most regions the deadline is months later. The preparation, however, can start now, and landlords who complete it early will find registration takes little time.

• Check your safety certificates. For each property, confirm the gas safety record, EICR or EIC, and EPC are current, and note their dates. Where an EPC rating falls below the minimum standard, check whether a MEES exemption is registered. Arrange any renewals now, not in the week your region opens.
• Confirm who the legal landlord is. Check whether each property is held in your own name, jointly, through a company or in a trust. Company-held properties should be registered to the company, using its Companies House number. If you act for someone else, for example under a power of attorney or as an executor, have certified or sealed evidence of your authority to hand.
• Gather the tenancy and rent details. For each property, note the number of occupants and households, the furnishing status, the rent and how often it is paid, and whether any utilities are included. Find your licence numbers too, if any apply.
• Set up a GOV.UK One Login. You will need one to use the service, so it is sensible to create it before your region opens.
• Note your deadlines. Find the region of each property you let and record its deadline. If you let in more than one region, consider registering everything at once from 15th December 2026.
• Talk to your agent. Agents and property managers will be able to supply some information on your behalf, but you start and finish the process. Once the government publishes its guidance for agents, agree who will provide what.
• Keep up with guidance. The government will publish further guidance on agent access and on registering vacant properties. You can sign up to GOV.UK email alerts on changes to private renting to hear when it is published.

How we can help

For landlords who let through us on an Introduction Only basis, we can talk through the requirement and what registration will involve for your properties, including which regions and deadlines apply to you.

The database is a real change, but a manageable one for any landlord whose compliance is already in order. The landlords who struggle will be those who find an expired certificate in the week their region opens.

Contact your local office to discuss your properties and your registration timetable.

This article is general information and is not legal advice. Dates and figures are correct as of 6th October 2026 and reflect the Renters' Rights Act 2025 and government guidance on the Register your rental property service published on GOV.UK. Further guidance is expected, including on agent access and the registration of unoccupied properties.