For renters

Can a landlord ask for more than the advertised rent in England?

Guide · England · Last checked on 14 September 2026

No. Since 1 May 2026, section 56 of the Renters' Rights Act 2025 has prohibited a landlord in England, or anyone acting on their behalf, from inviting a higher offer than the rent stated in a written advert, and from accepting one. Rental bidding is when a prospective tenant offers to pay more rent than was advertised. It is a civil matter rather than a criminal offence, and section 57 lets a council impose a penalty of up to £7,000.

If you have just been asked to go higher, the figure in the advert is still the figure. Below: what an advert has to say, what may not be done once it is published, which lettings are covered, how to report it and what your council will ask you for, and the one thing this part of the law does not do, which is get your money back. This guide covers England; the position differs in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Is it against the law for a landlord to ask me to offer more than the advertised rent?

Yes. Section 56 of the Renters' Rights Act 2025 stops it in two places. A landlord or agent must not invite or encourage any person to offer a rent higher than the amount stated in the written advert. They must not accept an offer above that amount either, even if you made it without being asked.

The prohibition binds more than the landlord. Section 56(6) defines a relevant person as the prospective landlord, or a person acting or purporting to act directly or indirectly on behalf of the prospective landlord. That wording covers a letting agent, and anyone working for one.

A breach is a civil matter, not a criminal offence. Nobody is prosecuted for it, which does not mean nothing follows from it: the civil penalty runs to £7,000. A local housing authority decides, on the balance of probabilities, whether it happened, and may impose a financial penalty. This sits alongside the other changes the Act made to how rent works, which the plain-English guide to the Renters' Rights Act 2025 sets out in full.

What counts as a written advert, and what does it have to say?

A written advert has to state one specific rent. The rule is in section 56(2), which says the letting must not be advertised in writing, or otherwise offered in writing, unless the rent is a specific amount and the advertisement or offer states it.

GOV.UK guidance for tenants lists what counts as a written advert:

an online property advert
a printed advert
a social media post
any digital communication, such as an email, a text message or a direct message

So a list of available properties sent to you by email is a written offer, and each property on it needs its own figure. A landlord or agent cannot list a property with a price range, because section 56(2) requires a single stated figure. They also cannot advertise a property as "offers over" a figure, because that invites offers above the stated rent, which is what section 56(3) prohibits.

There is one exception written into the Act. Section 56(5) puts a sign displayed at the dwelling, or at premises in which the dwelling is situated, which merely advertises that it is to let, outside the advertising rule. A board outside a house, or at the entrance to a block of flats, does not have to carry a price.

Can a landlord or agent tell me there are other offers to push my price up?

No. Once a property has been advertised at a specific rent, GOV.UK guidance explains how the prohibitions in sections 56(2) and (3) apply to what follows. They cannot ask or encourage you to offer more. They cannot publish a price range and ask you to bid within it or above it. They cannot tell you there are other bids in order to push your offer up. The guidance written for councils adds a second advert at a higher price for the same letting to that list.

The wording of the Act is wide. It forbids a landlord or agent to invite or encourage a prospective tenant to offer more rent than the amount advertised, and GOV.UK puts the same point as a catch-all: they must not act in any way that leads you to believe you need to offer more than the advertised rent.

What the law fixes is the figure in the advert. A landlord or agent may not invite anything above it, and may not take anything above it. Nothing in these sections requires a landlord to let to any particular person. They govern the rent that may be asked, not the choice of tenant. Chapter 3 of the same Act, in force the same day, separately restricts discrimination in the rental market, including against renters with children and renters who receive benefits. This guide does not cover that chapter, and it is not the only law that bears on the question.

Does the ban cover the home I am applying for?

Yes, for most private lettings in England. Chapter 6 of the Act came into force on 1 May 2026 under SI 2026/421, and what matters is when the landlord or agent acted: advertising, inviting or accepting on or after that day is covered. So an advert placed in April 2026 does not put a landlord who pushed for more in May outside the rule. The law regulates the advertising and offer stage of a proposed letting, so it bites before any tenancy exists, and the date your current tenancy started does not decide it.

The ban covers most ordinary private lettings in England, which are assured tenancies. Section 56(6) writes two exclusions into the definition: a tenancy of social housing, and a tenancy of supported accommodation.

Property portals are in a different position. GOV.UK guidance for councils says websites that only host adverts cannot be found liable for a rental bidding breach. Liability sits with the landlord, and with anyone acting on their behalf.

This is England only. Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland set their own rules for renting, and this guide does not cover them.

Can I get into trouble for offering more than the advertised rent?

No. GOV.UK guidance for councils says tenants cannot be found liable for a rental bidding breach. The rules place duties on landlords and their agents during the advertising and offer stages of a letting, and none of them falls on you.

That stays true after the event. A renter who has already offered more than the advertised rent can still report it. So can a renter whose higher offer was accepted, and who has since moved in. Whether you knew about the prohibition at the time makes no difference to the position of the landlord or the agent.

How do I report rental bidding, and what will my council ask for?

Report it to the local housing authority for the area the property is in, which is usually the council. They are the body with the power to look into it and to impose a penalty. If you are already living in the property, what a report might mean for your tenancy is outside this guide, and Citizens Advice and Shelter give free advice on that.

GOV.UK says the council may ask you for:

evidence of the original advertised rent
evidence of the rental bidding
a statement from you
the tenancy agreement

The first item is the one people lose. An online advert can be edited or taken down at any point, and the figure that was on it last week goes with it. A message asking you to go higher sits inside an app, on an account you may not still have. The standard a council applies is the balance of probabilities, and the advertised figure is one of the things it weighs. A dated screenshot or saved copy of an advert can be used to show what rent was advertised on a particular day, and messages show what was said after it. The same habit helps elsewhere: our guide on whether a landlord can charge you for referencing covers the payments that are prohibited outright, and getting one back also starts with a record of what you were asked for.

VEYLO X is a software platform for renting and letting in England. The platform is not open yet. It is built for record keeping: a dated record of what each side said and when, on the platform itself, and not of adverts published anywhere else. The platform does not decide any question about a letting, takes no view on any individual case, and neither investigates anything nor decides whether a rule has been broken. It is not a compliance tool, and it changes nothing about how a council enforces these rules.

What happens to a landlord or agent who breaks the rule?

A local housing authority may impose a financial penalty of up to £7,000 under section 57 of the Renters' Rights Act 2025. It is a civil penalty rather than a prosecution, and the authority decides on the balance of probabilities. Whether a penalty is imposed at all, and at what level, is for that authority.

There are two types of breach. One is failing to state a specific rent in a written advert or offer. The other is inviting, encouraging or accepting an offer above the stated rent. If the same person is penalised for the same type of breach again within five years of the first penalty, the authority may impose a penalty for that second breach and an additional penalty on top of it, each capped at £7,000.

Schedule 5 sets out the order it happens in. The authority gives a notice of intent, setting out the proposed penalty and the reasons for it, and it must normally do that within six months of the day it first had sufficient evidence. The landlord or agent then has 28 days to make written representations. After that the authority decides, and if it imposes a penalty it gives a final notice, payable within 28 days. The landlord or agent may appeal to the First-tier Tribunal within 28 days of the final notice, and the final notice is suspended while that appeal runs.

I already paid more than the advertised rent. Can I get that money back?

Not through this part of the law. A landlord or agent who breaks the rule can be fined by the local authority, and the penalty is paid to the authority. The legislation does not provide for a renter to be compensated.

The Act does not cap rent either. A landlord may advertise a property at whatever figure they choose. What section 56 requires is that the figure is stated, and that nothing above it is invited or accepted once it has been. Once a tenancy is running, a separate set of rules governs putting the rent up, and how a landlord can increase rent under the Renters' Rights Act 2025 goes through the statutory procedure and how to challenge a proposed increase.

A penalty under section 57 can be imposed only by a local housing authority, so a report to the council is the route to that part of the law. GOV.UK guidance for councils adds that where the complaint relates to a letting agent, a tenant can also seek a remedy through the agent's redress scheme. Whether anything else is open to you depends on your situation, and free independent advice is available from Citizens Advice and Shelter.

Common questions

Can a landlord advertise a rent as a price range, or as offers over an amount?

No to both, for different reasons. A price range fails section 56(2) of the Renters' Rights Act 2025, because no specific amount is stated, and GOV.UK guidance says plainly that a price range is not allowed. "Offers over" a figure does state an amount, but it invites offers above that amount, which is what section 56(3) prohibits.

What if the landlord accepted my higher offer before I knew about this rule?

The rule binds the landlord and anyone acting on their behalf, not you. GOV.UK guidance for councils says tenants cannot be found liable for a rental bidding breach, and you can still report it to your local council after the event, including once you have moved in. Whether you knew about the rule at the time does not change the position of the landlord or the agent.

Does the ban on rental bidding apply outside England?

No. The prohibition in section 56 of the Renters' Rights Act 2025 applies to relevant tenancies in England. Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland set their own rules for renting, and this guide does not cover them. Check the position for the nation you are renting in.

Sources

The primary sources behind this guide. Where the law and a summary disagree, the law is what counts.

This article is general information, not legal advice. It reflects the position in England as at September 2026. Chapter 6 of the Renters' Rights Act 2025, which contains sections 56 and 57, came into force on 1 May 2026 under SI 2026/421, so far as it was not already in force. For your own situation, take independent advice, and free help is available from Citizens Advice and Shelter.