Fairer for Who? LRG warns Renters’ Rights Bill
Leads to the Exclusion of Tenants Who Rely On Paying Rent in Advance
The Renters’ Rights Bill aims to make renting fairer. But new research from LRG (Leaders Romans Group) suggests one unintended consequence could be to block access to good-quality housing for people who don’t fit the standard referencing mode, including overseas applicants, the self-employed and those without a UK credit history.
At the heart of the issue is a proposed cap on advance rent, limiting it to just one month. While designed to protect renters, this change would remove a tool that thousands currently rely on to secure a home.
LRG’s Q1 2025 Lettings Report shows that 57% of tenants have encountered difficulties securing a property, with 21% saying the main challenge was raising several months’ rent up front, a practice often used to strengthen an application when conventional references are limited. Closely linked barriers are no UK credit history at 11% and self-employed or irregular income at 10%,
According to the Lettings Report, 57% of tenants have already faced difficulties securing a rental property. Specifically, the survey asked landlords how likely they were to accept people on low income with or without several months’ advance rent. With additional advance rent, 41% are likely to accept a low-income tenant. However, without it, this figure falls to just 6%.
From a landlord perspective, the value of this flexibility is clear. 41% of landlords say they’re likely to accept a low-income applicant if they can pay rent in advance. Without that option, willingness drops to just 6%. National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA) research confirms that 91% of landlords already take no more than one month in advance and only 8% ask for more, generally when references are thin or credit history is weak.
The NRLA and Propertymark have also warned that removing the ability to negotiate advance payments will make it even harder for some tenants to secure a home, particularly those with poor credit or variable income.
Goodlord’s tenant referencing guidance also confirms that self-employed renters who’ve been trading for less than six months typically need to offer a guarantor or rent in advance to meet affordability criteria.
The impact could be especially severe for international renters. A recent article in The Times highlighted that overseas students, who often can’t provide a UK guarantor, rely on paying several months in advance to pass referencing. If that route disappears, they could be forced into more expensive, less flexible accommodation.
Allison Thompson, National Lettings Managing Director at LRG, commented “The intention to make renting fairer is positive, but fairness must start at the application stage. Our data shows that many tenants rely on rent in advance as a practical, proven solution. Four in ten landlords are open to this where it helps a reliable applicant secure a home. Capping advance rent could have the opposite effect to what’s intended, making the system less fair for those who already face barriers. We urge Parliament to protect the option for landlords and tenants to agree a higher up-front payment where it’s the only route to securing a home. Negotiated advance payments, used with safeguards, are a bridge into housing, not a loophole.”
As the Bill continues through Parliament, LRG is calling for amendments that retain controlled flexibility, allowing landlords to respond to individual tenant circumstances, while still operating within clear and fair safeguards.
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