Described as “the biggest shake-up to the private rented sector for over 30 years”, the Bill has been further amended to prevent landlords from being able to demand multiple months’ rent in advance as a condition for securing a home.

There is currently no limit on how much rent a landlord can request upfront, and some renters are being asked to pay up to a years’ worth of rent, amounting to thousands of pounds before even agreeing a tenancy.

For landlords, the ability to request one month’s rent in advance will remain, alongside a security deposit of up to five or six weeks rent.

Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner said this amendment will crack down on the small number of unscrupulous landlords who are making the most out of the housing crisis by asking some tenants to pay huge amounts in rent before being able to move into a home, and make sure housing is accessible and fair for millions of tenants. 

The secretary of state for housing said: “Through our Plan for Change we are tackling the housing crisis head on, delivering the biggest boost in social and affordable housing in a generation, raising living standards across every part of the country, and putting more money into people’s pockets.

“For far too long working people and families have been at the mercy of a fickle and unfair rental market, faced with outrageous upfront costs, and struggling to find a safe and secure place they can truly call home.  

“We are delivering on our promise to transform the lives of millions of renters so families can put down roots, allow their children to grow up in secure and healthy homes, and make sure our young people can save for their future.”

Another change in law will safeguard bereaved guarantors, who are often family members, from being forced to pay rent for the rest of the tenancy where a loved one has died.

This will mean families will not be put in unfair financial hardship during a time of grief and will not be liable for extended periods of rent when trying to end the tenancy agreement in unforeseen and tragic circumstances.

The amendment will be set out, alongside other enhanced protections in the Bill, by the Housing Minister in the House of Commons today, marking another step forward in achieving a new reality for 11 million renters.

Housing minister Matthew Pennycook told the House of Commons yesterday: “The Bill will modernise the regulation of our country’s insecure and unjust private rented sector, levelling decisively the playing field between landlord and tenant.

“It will empower renters by providing them with greater security, rights and protections so they can stay in their homes for longer, build lives in their communities and avoid the risk of homelessness.

“It will ensure we can drive up the quality of private rented housing so that renters have access to good quality and safe homes as a matter of course.

“And it will allow us to crack down on the minority of unscrupulous landlords who exploit, mistreat, or discriminate against renters.”  

Further new amendments to strengthen tenant rights and protections in the Bill include: 

• A new rule to protect students which will stop tenants from feeling pressured to sign a lease for a new house so early into an academic year, discouraging landlords from pressuring students into early commitments. Students will no longer be locked into an agreement more than six months in advance of moving in 
• Closing potential loopholes in rent repayment orders (RROs), ensuring superior landlords can be liable for RROs if an offence has been committed even if the rent was not paid directly to them, but through an agent or intermediate landlord.
• Fees paid by landlords will directly fund the creation and work of the private rented sector Ombudsman, providing renters and landlords with access to an effective and fair dispute resolution service.

A full list of amendments to the Renters’ Rights Bill can be found here.