The Renters’ Rights Act came into force on 1 May 2026. For student landlords, there is one specific step that needs to happen before the end of this month and it applies to every tenancy signed before that date.
Miss the deadline and the ability to recover your property at the end of the academic year becomes significantly harder to guarantee. This applies to student landlords across NE2, NE6, and the entirety of Newcastle
What is Ground 4A?
Ground 4A is the possession ground introduced by the Renters’ Rights Act specifically for student HMOs. It replaces Section 21 notices and fixed-term expiry as the mechanism for recovering a student property at the end of the academic year.
To use it, the property must be an HMO — at least three tenants, at least two of whom are unrelated, all tenants must be full-time students, and the landlord must intend to re-let to another group of students. Possession can be sought between 1 June and 30 September each year.
Going forward, a written pre-notice of intent to use Ground 4A must be served before any new tenancy is signed. For tenancies already signed before the Act came into force, a transitional concession applies — but it carries a fixed deadline of 31 May 2026.
What needs to happen this month
Every student landlord will have two tenancies in play right now, the tenants currently in the property, and the incoming tenants who have already signed for the next academic year. Both require action before 31 May.
Current tenants
For tenants in the property now, two notices are needed. The written Ground 4A pre-notice must be served by 31 May. The official Section 8 notice using Form 3A must follow by 31 July 2026 latest. The transitional rules allow a two-month notice period rather than the standard four months, which keeps possession on track for Move ins between July-September. Both notices need to be correct and served on time, one without the other is not sufficient.
Incoming tenants, signed for summer 2026–2027
For tenants who have already signed their agreement for the next academic year, the pre-notice is the immediate requirement. Ordinarily it would need to be served before the tenancy is signed, but because these agreements predate the Act, the concession allows it to be served by 31 May instead.
The Section 8 Form 3A for this group comes later, at a minimum of four months before possession is needed. The right time to serve it is when a replacement tenant is secured for summer 2027, so the dates align cleanly.
What happens if the deadline is missed?
Without the pre-notice served by 31 May, Ground 4A cannot be used for that tenancy. For current tenants, the two-month notice window is lost and July-September possession becomes very difficult to guarantee unless your tenants serve you notice. For incoming tenants, it means the ground cannot be relied upon for summer 2027 possession at all.
For student landlords in Jesmond, Heaton, and Sandyford, where the letting model depends heavily on annual academic-year turnover, these are not abstract risks.
What Bowson can do
Bowson can handle this for £75 + VAT per tenancy. For current tenants, that covers the pre-notice and the Form 3A Section 8 notice. For incoming tenants, it covers the pre-notice now and the Form 3A when the time comes to serve it ahead of summer 2027.
Landlords on Bowson’s full management service have already had this taken care of. For let-only landlords, action is needed before the end of May.
To instruct Bowson, email [email protected].
Read the full renters rights blog: Renters’ Rights Bill: What It Means for Newcastle’s Student and Professional Lettings Market
This article is provided as general guidance only and does not constitute legal advice. If you are uncertain about your specific situation, Bowson recommends seeking independent legal advice.