Rent payments
Rent payments are the contractual sums a tenant pays to a landlord at agreed intervals in return for the right to occupy a residential property, as defined by the terms of the tenancy agreement and governed by the Housing Act 1988 and the Tenant Fees Act 2019. Rent is the landlord's primary source of rental income and the baseline figure used to calculate the tenancy deposit cap, the holding deposit limit, and the arrears threshold for mandatory possession grounds.
What counts as rent
Rent is the amount specified in the tenancy agreement as due for occupation of the property. It can lawfully include service charges and utility costs, including gas, electricity, water, broadband, provided the tenancy agreement specifies these terms explicitly. Where utilities are bundled into the rent, the Tenant Fees Act 2019 requires the amounts to reflect actual costs; a landlord cannot profit from reselling utilities above the regulated maximum resale prices set by Ofgem under the Electricity Act 1989 and the Gas Act 1986. Council tax can be included in an all-inclusive rent, but this does not override the statutory hierarchy of council tax liability, the tenant remains liable to the local authority regardless of any agreement with the landlord.
Charges that fall outside the list of permitted payments under the Tenant Fees Act 2019, such as admin fees, check-out charges, or renewal fees, cannot be incorporated into the rent figure to avoid the prohibition. The distinction between a rent payment and a prohibited payment matters because only rent lawfully due can form the basis of rent arrears proceedings or a deposit deduction.
Rent in advance: limits under the Renters' Rights Act 2025
Before the Renters' Rights Act 2025, landlords could request multiple months' rent in advance as a matter of commercial practice. From 1 May 2026, this is restricted. As set out in the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government's guidance on rent payments and deposits, landlords and agents may not demand, encourage, or accept rent in advance before the tenancy agreement has been signed. Once the agreement is signed, a landlord may request up to one month's rent in advance (or up to 28 days for weekly tenancies) before the tenancy start date. A landlord cannot include any term in the tenancy agreement requiring the tenant to pay rent in advance once the tenancy has started. Tenants may choose to pay early voluntarily, but this cannot be a condition of the agreement.
Payment methods and joint liability
Rent is most commonly paid by bank transfer via standing order, the tenant's bank automatically sends payment on a fixed date each month. Landlords using August use open banking via Plaid to automatically detect and categorise rent payments as they arrive, removing the need for manual reconciliation and creating a complete payment history for tax and compliance purposes. Other methods include direct bank payment, cash (with a written receipt required), and cheque, though cheques are now uncommon. Where a tenancy is paid weekly, the Housing Act 1988 requires the landlord to provide a rent book or equivalent written record.
In a joint tenancy, all named tenants are jointly and severally liable for the full rent. This means a landlord can pursue any one or all tenants for the entire outstanding amount if payment is missed, the fact that one tenant has paid their share does not reduce the other tenants' liability.
Record-keeping obligations
Landlords using self-assessment or Making Tax Digital for Income Tax are required to maintain accurate records of all rental income received. Under the Renters' Rights Act, landlords are also expected to provide tenants with a receipt or statement on request. From working with self-managing landlords across the UK, the most common record-keeping failure we see is informal arrangements, such as cash payments without receipts, bank transfers not matched to tenancies, which create difficulty when a tenant later disputes payment history or when HMRC queries rental income figures.
When rent is not paid
A tenant who fails to pay rent on the agreed date falls into rent arrears. Early contact, on or shortly after the missed date, resolves most cases before they escalate. Where arrears continue, the mandatory possession threshold under Ground 8 of the Housing Act 1988 (as amended by the Renters' Rights Act 2025) is three months of unpaid rent. For a step-by-step guide to managing missed payments, issuing late rent notices, and when to escalate to Section 8 proceedings, see the August guide to handling late rent payments.
For the mechanics of how landlords receive and track those payments, including standing orders, bank transfer matching, and what to do when payment is late, see the August definition of rent collection.
Frequently asked questions
Can a landlord charge more than one month's rent in advance?
From 1 May 2026, a landlord may only request up to one month's rent in advance (or 28 days for weekly tenancies) after the tenancy agreement has been signed and before the tenancy starts. Demanding, encouraging, or accepting more than this is a breach of the Tenant Fees Act 2019 and can attract a civil penalty of up to £5,000 for a first offence.
Does rent include service charges and bills?
It can, if the tenancy agreement explicitly says so. If utilities are bundled into the rent, they must reflect actual costs. Charges not listed as permitted payments under the Tenant Fees Act 2019, such as admin fees or check-out charges, cannot be folded into the rent figure.
What if a tenant in a joint tenancy refuses to pay their share?
All joint tenants are jointly and severally liable for the full rent. If one tenant does not pay their share, the landlord can pursue any or all named tenants for the outstanding amount. The non-paying tenant's refusal does not reduce the others' obligation to the landlord, though the paying tenants may have a separate civil claim against the defaulting tenant.
