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Original counts from official sources, newest first. Each links to the full write-up and its method.
The First-tier Tribunal decided 358 challenges to rent increases in May to July 2026, against 133 in the same months of 2025. Every published market rent decision since January 2025 was read: in about seven of ten decided since 1 May, the tribunal set a lower rent than the landlord proposed. Most of the cases began with notices served in the four months before the Act came into force.
England’s average private rent was £1,459 a month in August 2026, up 4.0% in a year, on the Office for National Statistics’ figures. Counted council by council: rents rose 5.8% in the North East and North West against 3.0% in the South East, fastest in Tewkesbury, Kirklees and Oldham, and fell in 11 councils including Westminster and Brighton and Hove.
On HMRC’s own statistics, 279,000 people with rental income join Making Tax Digital for Income Tax in April 2027 and 338,000 in April 2028, the largest landlord wave of the three. By April 2028, 876,000 will be in, about three in ten of everyone with rental income; seven in ten stay outside on today’s thresholds.
Prosecutions of landlords in England for Housing Act 2004 offences fell from 1,067 in the year to March 2017 to 166 in the year to March 2026, after councils were given the power to fine instead. At the tribunal, every rent repayment order decision since January 2025 was read: £1.50 million of rent was ordered repaid in 2025, 93% of orders rested on licensing offences, and London had 85% of the money.
The Home Office issued 366 Right to Rent civil penalties worth £3,421,800 in 2024, against 155 worth £151,480 in 2023, after the penalties went up on 13 February 2024. The average penalty rose from £977 in 2023 to £11,004 in 2025, and 91% of the £8.09 million issued since the scheme began in 2016 has come since April 2024.
51 people were prosecuted for squatting in a residential building in England and Wales in the year to March 2026, up from 26, and 31 of them were in London. 29 were prosecuted for unlawful eviction or harassment of an occupier, against 68 in the year to March 2017. Ten years of Ministry of Justice figures, counted offence by offence.
Accelerated possession claims, the Section 21 route, rose from 6,373 in January to March 2026 to 8,314 in April to June in England, the quarter the Renters’ Rights Act came into force. Counted council by council from the Ministry of Justice’s own local authority data: the West Midlands rose 37%, Birmingham and Ealing added the most claims, and Lambeth and Bradford doubled.
HMRC’s official list of software for Making Tax Digital for Income Tax names 128 products that handle landlords’ UK property income. Only 84 of them can send the tax return that completes the year, according to a count of every product page on the GOV.UK software finder by LetCompliance.
“Landlords are being told to pick software from HMRC’s list, and most will look at whether it sends the quarterly updates. The tax return line matters just as much. A third of the products on the list cannot yet finish the year, so a landlord choosing today should check that line, and the other income they need to report, before they sign up.”
Figures
Each set is as at the date of its source. Official lists and statistics are updated, so later figures may differ.
358
rent challenges decided in May to July 2026, against 133 a year earlier
134
decided in June 2026 alone, against about 33 a month in January to April
69%
of decisions since 1 May set a lower rent than the landlord proposed; 24% the same, 7% higher
15.2%
median increase landlords proposed in decisions since 1 May (£152 a month)
8.7%
median increase the tribunal set (£100 a month)
7.3%
median cut where the tribunal lowered the landlord’s figure (£100 a month)
273
of 276 decisions since 1 May began with a notice served before the Act came into force
115
decisions in London in May to July 2026, up from 25 a year earlier
Source: HM Courts and Tribunals Service, Residential property tribunal decisions (GOV.UK), category “Rents - Market rent (assured shorthold tenancy)”. The 1,028 market rent decisions made from 1 January 2025 were read by LetCompliance on 6 October 2026; outcome figures cover the decisions where the rents could be read. The tribunal also decides housing association rents, so these are not only private landlords’.
£1,459
average monthly private rent in England
+4.0%
on a year earlier, up from 3.4% in June 2026
+5.8%
in the North East and North West, the fastest regions; the South East rose 3.0%
+13.4%
in Tewkesbury, the fastest council, then Kirklees (12.8%) and Oldham (12.5%)
11
councils where rents fell, most of all Wyre Forest (-2.4%)
140
of 294 councils where rents rose faster than England’s 4.0%
£3,690
in Kensington and Chelsea, the most expensive; outside London, Oxford (£1,963)
£558
in Hartlepool, the cheapest council in England
Source: Office for National Statistics, Price Index of Private Rents, released 16 September 2026, covering August 2026. Rankings by LetCompliance from the ONS figures on 6 October 2026. The next ONS release is due on 21 October 2026.
279,000
people with rental income join MTD in April 2027; 182,000 have rental income only
338,000
join in April 2028, the largest landlord wave of the three
876,000
with rental income in MTD by April 2028, 563,000 of them with no self-employment
7 in 10
people with rental income stay outside MTD on today’s thresholds
259,000
with rental income in the first wave, April 2026; 63,000 of them live in London
2.85m
individuals declared UK rental income on Self Assessment in 2024 to 2025
479,000
landlords live in London: 17% of landlords, 28% of rental income
436,000
sent a first quarterly update by 12 August 2026
Source: HMRC, Making Tax Digital for Income Tax business population statistics (13 August 2025, 2023 to 2024 returns), MTD region management information (17 March 2026) and Property rental income statistics (28 August 2026). Sums and shares by LetCompliance from HMRC’s rounded figures; who actually joins depends on income in later years.
-84%
Housing Act 2004 prosecutions in England, 1,067 (2016-17) to 166 (2025-26)
237
rent repayment order decisions in 2025, up from 194 in 2024
72%
of applications decided since January 2025 ended in an order (265 of 369)
£1.50m
of rent ordered repaid in 2025, a median of £6,141 an order
93%
of orders rested on licensing: unlicensed HMOs or selective licensing
85%
of the money ordered in 2025 was in London; London median £8,908
7 of 34
claims based on illegal eviction or harassment led to an order
24
decisions in Hackney since January 2025, the most of any council
Sources: Ministry of Justice, Criminal Justice Statistics Quarterly: March 2026 (offence codes 19638, 19639 and 19687, English police force areas); HM Courts and Tribunals Service, Residential property tribunal decisions, the 376 rent repayment order decisions made from 1 January 2025 to 6 October 2026, read by LetCompliance. Amounts are as ordered, not as paid.
£3.42m
of penalties issued in 2024, against £151,480 in 2023
366
penalties in 2024, the most in any year since the scheme began in 2016
£2.80m
issued in 2025, in 254 penalties
£1.29m
issued in January to June 2026, in 108 penalties
£11,004
average penalty in 2025, against £977 in 2023
91%
of the £8.09m issued since 2016 came from April 2024 onwards
£590,160
issued in the eight years from 2016 to 2023 combined
£10,000
per occupier for a first breach since 13 February 2024; £20,000 for a repeat
Source: Home Office, Immigration Enforcement transparency data: Q2 2026, published 27 August 2026, table CP_03. Values are as issued, before objections, appeals or the faster payment reduction; one penalty can cover several tenants. Yearly totals and averages by LetCompliance.
51
prosecuted for squatting in a residential building, up from 26 a year earlier
31
of them in the Metropolitan Police area; 10 in Northumbria
27
convicted of squatting in the year
29
prosecuted for unlawful eviction or harassment of an occupier; 21 convicted
68
prosecuted for eviction or harassment in the year to March 2017
7
eviction or harassment prosecutions in South Yorkshire, the most of any police area
279
prosecuted for squatting in the ten years to March 2026
371
prosecuted for unlawful eviction or harassment in the same ten years
Source: Ministry of Justice, Criminal Justice Statistics Quarterly: March 2026, published 30 July 2026, outcomes by offence data, England and Wales. Each defendant is counted once, under the most serious offence they faced, and by police force area. Ten-year totals by LetCompliance.
8,314
accelerated possession claims in England, assigned to a council
+30%
on January to March 2026 (6,373); the same two quarters of 2025 were flat
+15%
on April to June 2025 in England
8,569
in England and Wales, 36% of all landlord possession claims (Ministry of Justice)
+37%
in the West Midlands, the biggest regional rise; the North East did not change
189
councils with more accelerated claims than a year earlier; 91 had fewer
+81
claims each in Birmingham and Ealing, the biggest rises; Lambeth and Bradford doubled
281
claims in Newham, the most in England, though down from 387
Source: Ministry of Justice, Mortgage and landlord possession statistics: April to June 2026, published 19 August 2026. Council and regional figures counted by LetCompliance from the Ministry’s local authority data on 6 October 2026, England only; the Ministry assigns each claim to the council of the defendant’s address.
165
products on HMRC’s list for Making Tax Digital for Income Tax
128
ready now for UK property income for individual landlords
84
of those 128 show the tax return as ready now
32
show the tax return as “in development”
12
do not include the tax return
11
are built for UK property income alone; 4 of them show the tax return ready now
11
of the 84 are ready for all 16 other income types and items HMRC lists
22
have a free version and the tax return ready now
Source: HMRC, Find software that works with Making Tax Digital for Income Tax (GOV.UK), product pages read on 6 October 2026. HMRC does not recommend any product and lists them in random order. Count by LetCompliance, which is one of the products on the list.
About
The paragraph to use at the foot of a story, written to be used as it stands.
LetCompliance is software that runs the whole let for private landlords in England, from one property to a portfolio of any size, and for letting agents. Plans start at £7.99 a month. One login covers adverts, applications and referencing, tenancy agreements signed online, rent collected by Direct Debit and arrears, certificates and reminders, Section 8 and Section 13 notices, repairs, inspections and inventories, a portal for every tenant, and landlord tax. LetCompliance is recognised by HMRC for Making Tax Digital for Income Tax, for UK property income, and sends quarterly updates to HMRC from the same records. Portfolio plans from £19 a month add a properties table, bulk actions and photo inventories, and every plan includes a read-only link for the landlord’s accountant. LetCompliance is built and run by its founder as a sole trader in Cheshire, England, and one property can stay on the free plan.
Plans, prices and what LetCompliance does not do are set out in Brand facts.
The founder
Erdem Volkan founded LetCompliance and runs it as a sole trader from Cheshire, England. Erdem lets property, and built LetCompliance so a landlord can run a let in one place, from the advert to the tax return.
Every public guide on the site is checked against legislation.gov.uk and GOV.UK publications before it is published, with Erdem as the named reviewer. Available for comment on Making Tax Digital for landlords, the Renters’ Rights Act 2025 and running a let without an agent.
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Contact
For interviews, data requests, comment and anything this page does not answer, write to hello@letcompliance.com. A person reads every message, and the founder answers press questions directly.
