Guarantor demands are rising after the ban on large rent-in-advance payments, with new Housing Hand research showing 37 percent of tenants did not know what a guarantor was before being asked to provide one.
The latest shift is not just tenant confusion. Housing Hand said 31 percent only learned they needed a guarantor after finding a property they wanted, pointing to a sharper screening process now that landlords and agents have lost one of their old fallback options under the Renters’ Rights Act.
The post-RRA lettings market is still adjusting in real time. If tenants cannot pay months upfront and cannot quickly line up a guarantor, deals can stall, voids can stretch and referencing choices become more important.
Housing Hand says guarantor requests are climbing
Housing Hand’s Understanding Renters in 2026 report said nearly four in 10 tenants did not understand the guarantor requirement before being asked for one. The report, based on nearly 1,700 private tenants, also found that 46 percent would not know what to do if they could not pay their rent, while 33 percent do not plan their finances ahead.
Graham Hayward, managing director of Housing Hand, said the ban on large upfront rent payments was pushing more landlords towards guarantors as an alternative form of security. His warning is notable because it captures a behaviour change after the rules switched, rather than a pre-launch prediction.
The report also highlights a practical pinch point for overseas renters, who may be able to afford the tenancy but still struggle to provide a UK-based guarantor. That can narrow the pool for landlords in markets where international demand matters, especially if agents have not updated how they explain the new rules at the start of the process.
Why the shift matters after the Renters’ Rights Act
The guarantor issue sits inside a wider reset in landlord risk checks. This follows Landlord Knowledge’s report on more landlords tightening tenant checks after the Renters’ Rights Act, alongside earlier coverage of how the rent bidding ban is forcing landlords to price correctly from the start. Put together, the pattern is clear: when pricing flexibility and upfront payment options narrow, more emphasis lands on affordability evidence and fallback security.
There is also a warning here for self-managing landlords. A guarantor request made too late in the process can waste enquiry volume and leave a property sitting empty while the paperwork catches up. The cleaner approach is to spell out requirements early, especially for students, overseas applicants and households with thinner income buffers.
Not every landlord will want to lean harder on guarantors. Some may decide that stronger affordability checks, closer income multiples or shorter decision windows are a better response. But the report suggests the market has already started moving, and landlords who do nothing may find more applications falling apart after offer stage.
What this means for landlords
- If you relied on rent in advance before May: review whether your referencing flow now needs a guarantor option built in from first enquiry.
- If you let to overseas or student tenants: make the guarantor requirement clear before viewings or offers to reduce wasted time.
- Watch for: more agents and guarantor providers reshaping their products around the post-RRA rules.
- Bottom line: the ban on large upfront rent payments is pushing risk checks towards guarantors, and late communication could cost landlords deals.
Editor’s view
The real story is not tenant confusion. It is that landlords are still rebuilding their security checks after the Renters’ Rights Act, and guarantors are filling part of the gap left by upfront rent.
Author: Editorial Team – UK landlord & buy-to-let news, policy, and finance
Published: 24 August 2026
Sources: Housing Hand
Related reading: Survey shows landlords tightening tenant checks after RRA
📘 Renters’ Rights Act: Complete Landlord Guide
Everything you need to know about the new rules – 1 May 2026
