If you’re a landlord, let me start by asking you a simple question. If your tenant stopped paying the rent tomorrow, how long could you afford to continue without receiving any rental income?
One month? Three months? Six months? What about ten months or even longer?

We insure our properties against fire, flood and other disasters. We insure our cars, holidays and even our pets. Yet many landlords still leave the income generated by what may be one of their largest financial investments completely uninsured. That has always carried a risk, but following the implementation of the Renters’ Rights Act, I believe the calculation has changed considerably.

Three months’ arrears – and then the notice period starts
One of the most important changes landlords need to understand is how the new mandatory serious rent-arrears possession ground works.

With Section 21 abolished in England, landlords seeking possession must now rely upon one or more of the statutory possession grounds.

Where a landlord is relying on mandatory Ground 8 for serious rent arrears and the tenant pays monthly, the tenant must first owe at least three months’ rent before the Ground 8 notice can be served. This is an important distinction. The three months is not the notice period. It is the arrears threshold that must first be reached.

The tenant must owe at least three months’ rent when the notice is served and still owe at least that amount when the case reaches the court hearing. Once the threshold has been reached, the landlord can serve notice and must then wait a further four weeks before possession proceedings can be commenced.

So, in a straightforward case where a monthly-paying tenant simply stops paying, the journey broadly looks like this:
First missed payment → three months’ arrears → Ground 8 notice served → four-week notice period → court proceedings can begin.