If you own one or two properties in London, you are like most landlords in England, and you have the least room for error. A single empty month, a missed certificate or a tenant who stops paying can wipe out a year’s profit.
Since the Renters’ Rights Act came into force on 1 May 2026, letting a flat is no longer a side job you can run from your phone. This guide shows what letting involves today, what it really costs you to do it yourself, and when handing it to an agent pays for itself.
This guide is for you if:
- You own one or two properties and have never used a managing agent
- You became a landlord by accident: you moved in with a partner, inherited a flat or couldn’t sell
- You live abroad, or are about to, and need someone on the ground in London
- You self-manage today and the new rules are making you think twice
What letting a London flat involves in 2026
Letting one flat carries the same legal duties as letting fifty. Here is what every landlord in England has to get right, before and during a tenancy.
| Duty | When | What happens if you miss it |
|---|---|---|
| Gas Safety certificate | Every 12 months | Criminal offence: unlimited fine or prison |
| Electrical safety report (EICR) | Every 5 years | Council fine up to £30,000 |
| Energy Performance Certificate, rating E or above | Before marketing, valid 10 years | Fines, and you cannot legally let |
| Smoke and carbon monoxide alarms | Checked at the start of every tenancy | Fine up to £5,000 |
| Deposit protected in a government scheme | Within 30 days of receiving it | Up to 3x the deposit to the tenant |
| Tenant referencing and immigration checks on every adult tenant | Before the tenancy starts | Up to £10,000 per tenant, £20,000 if repeated |
| Property licence, where your borough requires one | Before the tenancy starts | Unlimited fine and rent repayment orders |
| Renters’ Rights Act written information for tenants | At the start of the tenancy | Civil penalty up to £7,000 |
| Rent increases by formal notice only | Once a year, 2 months’ notice | Increase invalid; tenant can challenge at tribunal |
| Private rented sector database registration | Phased rollout from December 2026 | Civil penalty |
What changed on 1 May 2026
The Renters’ Rights Act changed the rules most small landlords relied on:
- No more fixed terms or Section 21. Tenancies now roll month to month. To regain your property you need a legal ground under Section 8, and evidence to prove it in court.
- Rent is set once and moved once a year. No bidding wars above your asking rent, no more than one month’s rent in advance, and tenants can challenge increases at a tribunal.
- Pets and families. You must consider a tenant’s request for a pet within 28 days, and you cannot refuse tenants because they have children or receive benefits.
- Higher penalties. Councils can fine landlords up to £7,000 for a first breach and up to £40,000 for serious or repeated ones.
None of this is hard for an agent who does it every day. For a landlord doing it once every two or three years, it is easy to get one step wrong.
Does your property need a licence?
Many London boroughs run additional or selective licensing schemes, and they cover ordinary flats, not just shared houses. Enter your postcode to check.
Free licensing check
Do you need a licence to rent out your property?
Enter the postcode and answer three quick questions. We'll tell you which licence the council requires, what it costs, when it starts and how to apply.
- Every London borough’s schemes
- Free, in under a minute
- Fees, dates and how to apply
What self-managing really costs you
Self-managing looks free because nobody sends you an invoice. The cost shows up in your time, and in the things that go wrong.
Your time
| Task | Hours in a typical year |
|---|---|
| Marketing, viewings and choosing a tenant | 15 to 25 |
| Referencing, contracts, deposit and move-in | 6 to 10 |
| Certificates, licence and compliance paperwork | 4 to 8 |
| Repairs: calls, quotes, access, follow-up | 10 to 30 |
| Rent chasing, bookkeeping and tax records | 5 to 10 |
| Total | 40 to 80 hours, much of it unplanned and during working hours |
If you live abroad, add time zones, and the cost of flying back when something can’t be sorted remotely.
Your risk
On a flat letting for £2,200 a month, these are the costs that make or break the year:
- An empty month costs £2,200 of rent, plus the council tax and bills you pay while it’s empty.
- A tenant who stops paying now means a Section 8 claim through the courts. Possession can take months, with rent unpaid throughout.
- One compliance mistake can cost more than a year of management fees: up to £7,000 for a first breach of the new rules.
- A deposit dispute you can’t evidence usually goes the tenant’s way. A proper check-in inventory is what wins it.
A good agent doesn’t remove these risks. It makes them much less likely, and deals with them when they happen.
Self-manage, let only or fully managed?
There are three ways to let a London flat. The right one depends on how much time you have, how close you live, and how much risk you want to carry.
| Self-manage | Let only | Fully managed | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who finds the tenant | You | Agent | Agent |
| Referencing, contract, deposit | You | Agent | Agent |
| Rent collection and chasing | You | You | Agent |
| Repairs and contractor access | You | You | Agent |
| Certificates, licence, legal updates | You | You, after move-in | Agent |
| Inspections and inventory | You | Move-in only | Agent |
| Typical cost | Nothing upfront, your time | One-off fee | Monthly % of rent |
| Best for | Landlords living nearby with time and experience | Confident landlords who only need a tenant | Busy, first-time or overseas landlords |
Cozee’s two services
Let only: 10% + VAT, plus a set-up fee. We market your property, find and vet the tenant, and set up the tenancy agreement. From move-in, you run the tenancy. For landlords who want to stay involved but don’t want the hassle of finding a tenant.
Let & Manage: 12% + VAT. The hands-off option. We take your property on board, find the tenant and manage everything day to day: rent, repairs, compliance and your tenant’s questions. Before we spend money on your behalf, we contact you to approve the expense, so you stay in control without doing the work.
A worked example: a £2,200 a month flat
Annual rent: £26,400. Figures include VAT and cover a year with a new tenant moving in.
| Annual cost | Self-manage | Let only | Let & Manage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Agent fee | £0 | £3,168 + set-up fee | £3,802 |
| Referencing, inventory, contract, deposit | £870 to £1,390 | Covered by set-up fee | Included |
| Repairs and maintenance | £1,200 to £2,500 | £1,200 to £2,500 | £1,200 to £2,500, approved by you |
| Total cash cost | £2,070 to £3,890 | £4,368 to £5,668 + set-up fee | £5,002 to £6,302 |
| Your time | 40 to 80 hours | 20 to 45 hours | A few hours approving costs |
Three things this table doesn’t show:
- Rent achieved. Cozee tenants pay on average 10 to 15% more than the local market. On this flat, 10% is £2,640 a year, which covers most of the Let & Manage fee.
- Empty weeks. One extra empty month while self-managing costs £2,200, more than half a year of Let & Manage fees.
- Tax. Agent fees are an allowable expense, so they reduce the rental profit you pay tax on.
See what you’d pay in tax
Mortgage interest no longer reduces your rental profit the way it used to. Since Section 24, you get a 20% tax credit instead, which hits higher-rate taxpayers hardest. Check your numbers with and without agent fees:
Landlord tax calculator
Section 24 calculator: own name or limited company?
Enter a year’s figures for your property. See what Section 24 costs you, and what you’d keep if you owned it through a limited company instead.
Letting a property? We help landlords get the most from their rent.
Or book a callAn estimate for one owner using England, Wales and Northern Ireland tax rates. It leaves out pension contributions, losses and interest carried forward from earlier years, other companies you own, taking a salary from the company, and Incorporation Relief. It isn’t tax advice: speak to a property accountant before you change how you own a property. Sources: GOV.UK Section 24 guidance, income tax rates, corporation tax rates.
More on this in our guide to tax on rental income.
When managing it yourself makes sense
We’d rather you choose the right option than the most expensive one. Self-managing can work well if:
- You live within an easy drive of the property
- You have flexible working hours for viewings, access and emergencies
- You have a reliable plumber, electrician and handyman already
- You’re comfortable with the new possession rules and keep records carefully
- You have enough savings to cover two or three months of lost rent
If you ticked all five, a let only service to find and vet the tenant may be all you need. If you missed two or more, the time and risk usually cost more than the fee.
Letting your London flat from abroad
Most of our landlords don’t live in London. Some moved away for work, some are overseas investors, some kept a flat when they emigrated. Letting from abroad adds problems a local landlord doesn’t have:
- Tax. Under HMRC’s Non-Resident Landlord Scheme, your agent or tenant must deduct basic rate tax from your rent unless HMRC approves you to receive it gross. We handle the registration and quarterly returns.
- Emergencies. A leak at 2am London time needs someone on the ground, not a message you read at breakfast.
- Paperwork. Right to Rent checks and some compliance steps need in-person or UK-based handling.
Cozee has specialised in overseas landlords since day one, with a team that speaks your language and reports you can read from anywhere.
Already have a tenant? Switching is simple
You don’t need to wait for a tenancy to end. We take over existing tenancies: we collect the paperwork, check the property is compliant, introduce ourselves to your tenant and take over rent collection from the next payment date. If your current agent is underperforming, you can switch within your notice period.
Only want help finding your next tenant? Let only covers marketing, referencing and the tenancy agreement, then hands the tenancy back to you.
What could your flat rent for?
Every number on this page starts with your rent. Get an instant estimate based on current London lettings, then we’ll show you what each option leaves in your pocket.
Free rental valuation
How much rent could your property earn?
Enter the postcode and answer four quick questions. We'll estimate the monthly rent from official ONS figures and the rents we achieve for landlords nearby.
- Official ONS rent data
- Calibrated on real Cozee lets
- Free, in under a minute
Want to see how that rent compares to what you paid? Work out your rental yield.
Let’s look at your property together
Tell us about your flat and we’ll come back within one working day with a rent estimate, the compliance steps it needs and a clear recommendation. That might be Let only or Let & Manage, or it might be that you’re fine managing it yourself.
Frequently asked questions
Often, yes. With one property, a single empty month or compliance mistake has a bigger impact on your yearly return than it would across a portfolio. An agent is most worth it if you live far away, work full time, or are letting for the first time since the Renters’ Rights Act.
Full management usually costs between 10% and 18% of the rent including VAT, and let only services are typically a one-off fee. Our Let only service is 10% + VAT plus a set-up fee, and Let & Manage is 12% + VAT. See our full guide to letting agent fees.
Let only means the agent finds and moves in the tenant, then hands the tenancy to you. Fully managed means the agent also collects rent, handles repairs, renews certificates and deals with the tenant for the whole tenancy.
Yes. The Act doesn’t require landlords to use an agent. It does make mistakes more expensive and removes Section 21, so you need to know the Section 8 grounds and keep good records.
Yes, subject to the notice period in your current agent’s terms. The tenancy continues as normal; only the manager changes.
Yes. You’ll need to register with HMRC’s Non-Resident Landlord Scheme, and you’ll need someone in the UK to deal with repairs, access and emergencies. Many of our landlords live overseas.
Yes. Agent fees are an allowable expense against your rental income, alongside repairs, insurance and certificates. Mortgage interest is treated differently under Section 24.
Last Updated on September 29, 2026