Landlords in West Oxfordshire have been invited to a free briefing on the Renters’ Rights Act, organised by estate agent Parkers Properties. The firm, which has offices in Witney and Eynsham, said in a release issued on October 13 that dozens of landlords are expected to attend.
The West Oxfordshire Landlord Webinar will take place on Monday, November 16, from 6-7.30pm. It includes a presentation led by Parkers Managing Director Brendan Kay and a Q&A session.
01Six months of new rules
According to the release, the briefing will come just over six months since the introduction of the Government’s Renters’ Rights Act. The Act, which came into force on May 1, represents the biggest changes to private renting in decades. Since then, landlords have had to deal with a completely different tenancy system, along with new rules around rent increases, possession and even pets.
Under the Act, landlords face higher fines, with civil penalties for non-compliance starting at £7,000 and rising to a maximum civil penalty of up to £40,000.
Ahead of the webinar, Parkers has also created a two-minute Landlord Quiz, giving landlords the opportunity to test their knowledge of the new rules and compliance requirements. Depending on their answers, the quiz tells landlords how much their non-compliance could cost them.
Brendan Kay said: “The Renters’ Rights legislation has fundamentally changed how landlords operate. Landlords can’t assume that the old ways of doing things remain the same. The reality is that the levels of compliance that are required and the penalties for getting it wrong are so much greater.”
He added: “Since the Act came into effect, we have increased the number of landlords whose portfolios we are managing, helping them to ensure the right processes and systems are in place and mitigating their risk of prosecution.”
02Database registration ahead
The release identifies the next key date for landlords in West Oxfordshire as March 15 2027, when the window opens to register their properties on the Private Rented Sector Database. The deadline for submitting various information and compliance documentation is June 14.
Brendan Kay said: “Our landlord briefing will provide landlords with a practical, jargon free update on what the new rules mean in the real world, what we have learned during the first six months and what landlords need to prepare for next.”
He continued: “We’ll look at the mistakes landlords need to avoid, how to increase rents correctly, consider the upcoming Private Rented Sector Database and assess the current state of the West Oxfordshire rental market.”
03Registering for the webinar
The webinar is free to attend, and landlords can register through the Parkers Properties website, where the Landlord Quiz is also available. The session forms part of a wider conversation about the private rented sector, which sits alongside broader market trends such as buyer demand improving as the housing market downturn eases.
For landlords weighing up their portfolios, the briefing is intended to offer a practical look at compliance, rent increases and the local rental market, according to the organisers.
Details and image via Parkers Properties.
