Updated 1 November 2026. If you have an assured periodic tenancy in England, a proposed rent increase needs to follow the current statutory process. A conversation about costs, a new figure in a message or an old contract clause should not be confused with the required notice.
Government guidance says the landlord can increase the rent only once a year and cannot do so in the first year of the tenancy. At least two months’ notice must be given using completed Form 4A, the landlord’s notice proposing a new rent. This is the section 13 process.
Read the notice before comparing the price
Start with the tenancy type, the notice, its proposed start date and the date the last increase took effect. Keep the original document and the message or envelope that accompanied it. Those records help an adviser consider the process as well as the proposed amount.
The government says notice may be delivered in person or by post, or by email where that is allowed by the tenancy agreement. Do not assume that an email has the same status for every tenancy simply because the parties normally use it for arranging repairs.
What if the proposed rent seems too high?
The First-tier Tribunal may be able to help where a tenant believes the increase exceeds the open-market rent. The guidance describes this as the rent the landlord would expect if the home were relet on the open market. It is not necessarily established by one unusually expensive advertisement or a landlord’s own financing costs.
Our suggestion is to assemble comparable evidence carefully: location, property type, size and condition should be relevant. Ask for housing advice promptly about the available process and applicable deadline rather than assuming an objection message alone starts a formal challenge.
Older notices need a separate check
The government distinguishes notices issued before 1 May 2026 using the earlier Form 4 from rent-review-clause increases agreed before that date but due to take effect afterwards. The transition rules are not the same for those two situations. An earlier valid increase also matters when establishing the earliest date of the next one.
This introduction replaces older archive advice about notice periods. It does not determine whether an individual notice is valid or what rent a tribunal would set. Check the official guidance and obtain advice before making decisions about a disputed payment.