The Deposit Protection Service says most landlords surveyed immediately after the Renters’ Rights Act began on 1 May planned to keep rents at their current level for the following six months.
The newly released review is a snapshot of intentions at the point the Act took effect, not a measure of rents actually achieved since then. It also records a rise from 53 percent to 56 percent in respondents intending to sell some or all of their portfolio between October and May.
Rent-setting decisions are now more exposed to the local market and the formal review process. Landlords need current comparable evidence before proposing an increase, while a decision to hold rent should be a considered choice rather than an assumption that costs have stopped moving.
Survey captures the first weeks after the Act
DPS says its latest landlord and tenant surveys were taken immediately after the 1 May implementation, giving the results a clear limitation. They describe sentiment at a transition point, before a full six months of behaviour under the new rules could be observed.
The review says the Act limits how often rents can be increased and requires landlords to set rent at the local market rate. It reports that a majority of landlord respondents planned to maintain rents over the next six months while they assessed the effect on their local market.
This follows Landlord Knowledge’s September report on Rightmove’s Section 13 rent-review tool, which focused on the evidence agents can use when preparing a proposed increase. DPS adds a different early signal: many respondents were initially choosing not to move rent at all.
Portfolio intentions moved towards selling
The share of respondents saying they did not plan to increase or decrease their portfolio over the next one to two years fell from 41 percent to 36 percent over six months. At the same time, the share saying they intended to sell some or all of their portfolio rose by three percentage points to 56 percent.
Those figures are survey responses, not a count of homes placed on the market, and they should not be treated as a forecast of sector-wide exits. They do show why landlords should plan decisions around their own cash flow, compliance workload and local demand rather than copying a headline view of the market.
Landlord Knowledge’s recent analysis of rental demand and affordability also found that pressure on rents varies by location and tenant budget. A broad intention to hold rents cannot replace a local comparison of available homes and achieved lets.
Deposit data shows slower tenancy growth
DPS says the number of protected deposits increased by 5,660 in the six months to 31 March 2026, compared with nearly 17,000 in the previous six months and more than 82,000 in the 12 months before that. The organisation says the slower growth could reflect fewer landlords taking deposits, longer tenancies after fixed terms ended, market maturity or a wider slowdown.
The DPS Private Rented Sector Review gives that caveat alongside the survey findings. It is important because deposit counts do not directly measure the number of rental homes or a landlord’s current letting costs.
What this means for landlords
- If you are considering a rent review: gather local market evidence and follow the required process rather than relying on last year’s rent.
- If you are holding rent: review mortgage, repair and compliance costs so the decision remains sustainable.
- Watch for: evidence from actual rent reviews and achieved lets as more data accumulates after 1 May.
- Bottom line: DPS records early caution among its respondents, but each landlord still needs a property-by-property decision backed by current local evidence.
Editor’s view
The useful part of this survey is not a claim that landlords have stopped raising rents. It is the reminder that a rule change can produce a pause while owners work out what fair, supportable rent looks like in their own market.
Author: Editorial Team – UK landlord & buy-to-let news, policy, and finance
Published: 30 September 2026
Sources: The Deposit Protection Service
Related reading: Rightmove adds Section 13 rent-review tool for agents
📘 Renters’ Rights Act: Complete Landlord Guide
Everything you need to know about the new rules – 1 May 2026
