"As the Renters' Rights Act reshapes the private rental sector, landlords and agents will need to move beyond treating inspections as isolated reports and start building a continuous understanding of how their properties perform over time"
- Sian Hemming-Metcalfe - Inventory Base
Almost half of UK landlords plan to inspect their rental properties no more than once a year after the Renters' Rights Act (RRA) abolishes fixed-term tenancies, new research from property management software firm Inventory Base has found.
Experts warn the approach could leave landlords seriously exposed as the sector moves toward indefinite periodic tenancies and tougher scrutiny of how properties are managed over time.
The RRA, which takes effect on 1 May 2026, will remove fixed-term assured shorthold tenancies (ASTs) in favour of open-ended periodic arrangements. That change eliminates the renewal milestones that landlords have long relied on as natural checkpoints for inspections and condition reviews.
How landlords are planning for the change
The survey of 800 UK landlords, commissioned by Inventory Base, reveals that many are not adapting their inspection practices ahead of the legislation. Among the findings:
- 26% plan to inspect annually
- 3% intend to inspect less than once a year
- 18% say they will only inspect when a tenant reports a problem
Those figures suggest a large proportion of landlords risk losing meaningful visibility of property condition across both short and extended tenancies.
Without fixed-term milestones, tenancies may run considerably longer without the reset point that a new tenancy agreement previously provided. Combined with the abolition of Section 21 "no fault" evictions, the practical effect is that property conditions could go unmonitored for prolonged periods.
From snapshots to continuous records
Historically, the start and end of a tenancy created clear evidential checkpoints. Inventory and check-out reports allowed landlords and agents to document conditions at specific moments and measure change over time. Interim inspections, typically at three months and then every three to six months, reinforced that picture as a matter of good practice rather than legal obligation.
As fixed-term milestones disappear, that model no longer holds. Regulators, adjudicators and local authorities are expected to place greater weight on patterns of maintenance, responsiveness and documented decision-making rather than isolated snapshots of condition. A single inspection report, however thorough, will carry less weight than a continuous audit trail.
In practice, this means landlords need to move beyond treating inspections as standalone events and instead build a chronological record, sometimes described as a "golden thread," showing how a property has been managed throughout the tenancy.
The lifecycle evidence approach
Inventory Base advocates what it calls a lifecycle evidence approach to property management. Rather than treating inspections as discrete reports, the model creates a continuous operational record covering property condition, management decisions and maintenance activity from the start of occupation through to re-letting.
Key elements of the approach include:
- An HHSRS risk assessment before the tenancy begins, establishing the property's safety baseline
- A detailed inventory and check-in report, with condition ratings, photographs and evidence of any pre-tenancy cleaning or repairs
- An early inspection at around three months, to identify issues such as ventilation problems, damp or emerging maintenance defects before they escalate
- Regular inspections on a structured schedule, often quarterly, before moving to six-monthly intervals
- A Fitness for Human Habitation check at around six months, feeding findings back into the ongoing HHSRS risk profile
Decision logging is equally important. Inspection records should capture not just what was observed, but the judgment made in response and what followed. Whether an issue was monitored, repaired, flagged to the tenant or left unaddressed, the reasoning should be documented.
Where action was taken, records should confirm the outcome, note any delays such as contractor availability, and close the loop with supporting photographs or confirmation before marking an issue resolved.
What this means for landlords
"As the Renters' Rights Act reshapes the private rental sector, landlords and agents will need to move beyond treating inspections as isolated reports and start building a continuous understanding of how their properties perform over time," said Sián Hemming-Metcalfe, operations director at Inventory Base.
"With indefinite periodic tenancies replacing fixed terms, many properties may remain occupied for much longer without the traditional reset point that previously came with a new tenancy. That means property management can no longer rely on occasional snapshots of condition."
"What landlords and agents will increasingly need is property intelligence, the continuous insight gained from HHSRS assessments, inspections, inventories and habitability checks throughout the life of a tenancy."
"By structuring inspections within a clear tenancy lifecycle framework, property managers can build the property intelligence needed to identify risks early, respond quickly to emerging issues and demonstrate that a home has been responsibly managed while it is occupied."
"In the post-RRA rental market, compliance will depend not just on the condition of a property at a single moment, but on the quality and continuity of the evidence behind how it has been managed."
A structured tenancy lifecycle should allow landlords to show that the property was safe at the start of the tenancy, that risks were monitored during occupation, that hazards were addressed promptly, and that the property was restored to the required standard before re-letting.
What happens next for the property market
With May's deadline drawing closer, landlords who continue to rely on infrequent or reactive inspections face growing compliance risk. As adjudicators and local authorities increasingly prioritise evidential continuity over point-in-time reports, the audit trail behind a property's management may matter as much as its physical condition.
Those who build that record now will be better placed to defend decisions, resolve disputes and demonstrate responsible ownership in the new landscape the RRA creates.
