Landlords are quitting the lettings market at the highest rate in a decade following the introduction of Labour’s Renters’ Rights Act, data show.
Around 44,000 rental homes have been sold across Britain since the start of July, according to property data company TwentyCi.
The analysis showed that 562 properties were being lost from the market every day in the third quarter of 2026, the highest rate since 2016. This compared to 495 a day in the same period last year and 167 at the start of the decade.
It comes after Labour introduced the Renters’ Rights Act on May 1, which abolished section 21 “no fault” evictions and transformed all tenancies into rolling contracts.
Landlords said the new law reduced their control over who lives in their property, how long they stay there and at what cost, hitting their profits and prompting some to exit the market.
Colin Bradshaw, of TwentyCi, said: “The fallout from the implementation of the Renters’ Rights Act shows no sign of abating.
“Landlords continue to abandon the buy-to-let market in droves because regulatory and economic pressures mean business is no longer viable.”
