6 things to consider when starting your estate and letting agency
Chris Toynbee, Director and co-founder at Gray & Toynbee, breaks down six of the top things that agents should know when starting their own lettings business.
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May 1 2026 - Renters' Right Act Commencement Day
You have 0 days to:
Serve any final Section 21 notices
Stop accepting above-asking rent offers
Prepare for the rental bidding ban
Remove “No DSS” from adverts
Remove “No Children” from listings
Show one clear rent price
Stop using fixed-term agreements
Switch to periodic tenancy templates
Check which tenancies go periodic
Stop taking rent before signing
Take no more than one month’s rent
Move all evictions to Section 8
Train staff on new notice rules
Create Section 13 process flow
Add two months to rent reviews
File court claims for Section 21s
Update landlord move-in grounds
Update landlord selling grounds
Send the RRA Information Sheet
Create written terms where missing
Update How to Rent processes
Review tenant screening questions
Update pet request processes
Stop backdating rent increases
Discuss rent protection backbooks
Act now before it is too late...
Chris Toynbee, Director and co-founder at Gray & Toynbee, breaks down six of the top things that agents should know when starting their own lettings business.
Chris Toynbee, Director and Co-Founder of Gray & Toynbee, talks through how he went about setting up the agency, the challenges that he's faced so far, and his top tips for other agents hoping to take the leap themselves.
This agent made the decision to set up a new lettings agency, Cloverhill Properties, bringing together her in-depth knowledge around relationship building and implementing digital solutions to create an efficient business with unique selling points from the get-go.
"Be prepared to work hard," says the founder of a thriving agency in Bristol, who has proven it's possible to set up a successful lettings agency even in a challenging lettings market.