What is buy-to-let?
Buy-to-let is when someone purchases a property with the specific intention of letting it out to tenants, rather than living in it themselves. Done well, it can provide a steady rental income alongside long-term capital growth — but it comes with real financial commitments and legal responsibilities that any prospective landlord should understand before buying.
What are the costs involved?
As a landlord, your rental income needs to comfortably cover your mortgage payments plus ongoing costs, including:
Annual gas safety checks
A Gas Safety Certificate is a legal requirement, renewed every 12 months by a Gas Safe registered engineer.
Electrical safety inspections
An Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR) is required at least once every 5 years.
Energy Performance Certificate
An EPC is required for every let property and needs renewing every 10 years.
Smoke & carbon monoxide alarms
Alarms must be fitted and maintained on every floor and in rooms with a fixed combustion appliance.
Buy-to-let mortgages
A buy-to-let mortgage works differently to a standard residential mortgage. Rather than assessing affordability mainly against your salary, lenders focus on the property's likely rental income — usually wanting the rent to cover your mortgage payment plus a margin, to protect against void periods.
Most buy-to-let mortgages are interest-only, meaning your monthly payment only covers the interest, with the loan itself repaid in full at the end of the term. Deposit requirements are typically higher than for residential mortgages — commonly 25% or more.
Choosing the right tenant
Think about who your property will suit — young professionals, families, or students — as this will shape both the type of property you buy and how you market it.
Proper referencing (credit checks, employer and previous-landlord references, and a Right to Rent check) is essential to protect your investment and reduce the risk of rent arrears. This is exactly the kind of process ATLAS manages on your behalf as part of our lettings service.
The Renters' Rights Act 2025
The Renters' Rights Act 2025 is the biggest shake-up of private renting in England for a generation. Its major reforms took effect from 1 May 2026, and every landlord needs to understand how they apply to existing and new tenancies alike.
End of Section 21 evictions
"No-fault" Section 21 evictions are abolished. Landlords needing possession must now rely on the strengthened Section 8 grounds (such as selling the property, moving in themselves, or persistent arrears/anti-social behaviour) — making accurate documentation more important than ever.
Assured periodic tenancies
Fixed-term assured shorthold tenancies (ASTs) have ended. All private tenancies are now open-ended assured periodic tenancies, giving tenants more flexibility to leave and landlords a different set of planning considerations around notice and turnover.
Rent increases, once a year
Rent can now only be increased once every 12 months, via a formal Section 13 notice — no more informal rent review clauses written into a contract.
Stronger property standards
Minimum standards are being enforced more strictly, including "Awaab's Law"-style requirements to investigate and fix serious hazards like damp and mould within fixed timescales.
Ombudsman & PRS database
Landlords will need to join a mandatory ombudsman redress scheme and a new Private Rented Sector database, with expanded regulatory oversight.
A stronger right to request a pet
Tenants have a strengthened right to request permission to keep a pet, and landlords can't unreasonably refuse — a written decision is required within 28 days, and reasonable conditions (such as pet insurance) can still be attached. There's no blanket policy either way: for flats, the freeholder or head lease's permission is needed too, and a superior lease that prohibits pets is valid grounds to refuse.
At ATLAS, we're aligning our own tenancy agreements, rent review processes and possession guidance with the Act, so our landlords stay compliant without having to track every change themselves.
This is a general summary for guidance only, correct to the best of our knowledge as of August 2026, and does not constitute legal advice. Renting law changes over time and can affect individual circumstances differently — always seek independent legal advice for your specific situation.
What are my responsibilities as a landlord?
As a landlord, you're legally required to:
- Arrange annual gas safety checks
- Provide an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC)
- Protect any cash deposit in a government-backed scheme
- Have wiring and electrical appliances safety checked (EICR)
- Install and maintain smoke and carbon monoxide alarms
- Carry out repairs and maintenance when required
- Only enter the property with the tenant's permission (except genuine emergencies)
- Follow the correct legal process — via Section 8 grounds — if eviction ever becomes necessary
If you'd rather hand all of this to specialists, that's exactly what our Fully Managed and Part Managed services are built for.
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