Only 23% of landlords know they must join the new private rented sector database and landlord ombudsman, according to fresh survey findings from property management platform August.
The result is the lowest awareness score across seven headline Renters’ Rights Act measures tested in the August Landlord Survey 2026, which polled 276 UK landlords between 4 and 25 September. Every landlord in England will need to register once the database rolls out, yet most respondents missed that requirement entirely.
The gap carries direct financial risk. Registration is expected to cost £65 per property, a charge that stacks up quickly across portfolios, while penalties for non-registration will fall on owners who simply never heard about the duty. With rollout planned region by region from December, landlords have weeks rather than months to get ready.
Database awareness lags behind pet and rent rules
Broader understanding of the Act looks stronger on the surface. August reports 81% of landlords say they grasp at least the main points, with 46% saying they have already changed how they operate and 35% saying they understand the points but have yet to act. One in eight knows the Act exists but not the detail, while 7% had not heard of it before the survey.
Familiarity clusters around day-to-day letting changes. The tenant right to request a pet, which landlords cannot unreasonably refuse, was recognised by 59% of respondents. The rule limiting rent increases to once a year by formal notice scored 55%. Close to half recognised the ban on refusing tenants with children or on benefits at 49%, the shift to periodic tenancies at 47% and the end of Section 21 no-fault evictions at 46%. Fewer, 42%, knew no more than one month’s rent can be taken in advance.
The database and ombudsman sit apart at 23%. Richard Samuel, chief executive of August, said landlords had put effort into letting and eviction changes. “What has not landed is that the database and the ombudsman are not optional extras for problem landlords; every landlord in England will have to register and sign up,” he said. “That is a communication failure the sector needs to fix before the registration deadline, because the penalties for not being on the database will fall on landlords who simply never heard about it.”
Ombudsman sign-up adds second deadline for owners
Alongside registration, landlords must join the new landlord ombudsman scheme for redress. The twin duties apply to all private landlords in England, not just those with complaints against them, and both carry enforcement risk if ignored.
August links the knowledge gap to practical behaviour shifts already under way. Around 39% of landlords have tightened referencing or affordability checks since the Act came into force, while 32% now ask for a guarantor where they did not before. The pattern suggests owners are acting where rules feel concrete, but missing back-office registration duties that sound administrative.
This follows Landlord Knowledge’s report on the NRLA’s £327m annual database cost estimate, which put the scale of fees and admin time facing the sector. That analysis focused on cost; the latest August numbers show awareness itself remains the first hurdle. Combined with Landlord Knowledge’s coverage of peers pressing ministers over the ombudsman scheme, the picture is one of large compliance machinery arriving before many owners know it exists.
What this means for landlords
- If you let in England: assume you must register each property and join the ombudsman once your regional window opens from December.
- Watch for: the £65 per-property registration fee, regional deadlines and proof-of-registration checks by councils and agents.
- Bottom line: diary the database now – ignorance will not work as a defence once enforcement starts.
Editor’s view
The Act was sold as letting reform, but the database is where it bites administratively. A 23% awareness rate weeks before rollout points to rushed comms, not landlord apathy. Owners who act now will pay a fee; owners who wait may pay a fine.
Author: Editorial Team – UK landlord & buy-to-let news, policy, and finance
Published: 21 October 2026
Sources: August Landlord Survey 2026, East Midlands Property Owners
Related reading: NRLA puts landlord database bill at £327m a year
📘 Renters’ Rights Act: Complete Landlord Guide
Everything you need to know about the new rules – 1 May 2026
