Government confirms ‘Register your rental property’ service: What the PRS database means for landlords and letting agents

The wait is over. Landlords and letting agents finally have some of the most important details about the new Private Rented Sector (PRS) database.

The Government has confirmed that its new ‘Register your rental property’ service will begin rolling out across England from 15 December 2026, starting in the West Midlands before moving region-by-region throughout 2027.

We also now know how much registration will cost, what landlords will need to provide, when different regions need to register, and more about the role letting agents can play in the process.

So what’s the headline? Landlords will need to pay £65 per property, every year, to register — and registration will be a legal requirement.

The responsibility for completing registration may sit with the landlord, but there will still be an important role to play for letting agents in helping landlords prepare and ensuring the right property and compliance information is available.

Full information on how agents can interact with the database is yet to be published, but here's what you need to know right now.

• What is the 'Register your rental property' service? 
  

• When will landlords need to register?

• Which properties need to be registered?

• How much will database registration cost?

• What information will landlords need to provide?

• Can letting agents register properties on behalf of landlords?

• What does the service mean for agency technology?

• What should letting agents do now?

What is the ‘Register your rental property’ service?

The Government’s new national ‘Register your rental property’ service is the public-facing name for the new Private Rented Sector (PRS) database in England.

The intention to create a national database was originally announced as part of the Renters’ Rights Act. We’ve previously covered what the PRS Database is and what it means for letting agents. Until now, however, some of the most important practical details were still to be confirmed.

That, and the name for the database, has now changed.

Under the ‘Register your rental property’ service, landlords of assured or regulated tenancies will need to register themselves and each of their properties through the service, although supported exempt accommodation, as defined in the Supported Housing (Regulatory Oversight) Act 2023, is excluded from the requirement.

The Government says the new system will give councils better access to information to help them identify rogue landlords and act more quickly.

In future, tenants will also be able to see whether their landlord or prospective landlord has registered. The Government says this should create a fairer market by helping responsible landlords demonstrate that they meet the required standards while making it harder for rogue landlords to undercut them.

When will landlords need to register?

The registration service will launch on 15 December 2026, but not all landlords across England will have to register at once. Instead, the requirement will be introduced region by region over 12 months. Once a region is called forward, landlords will have a three-month registration window.

Source: UK Government, ‘Register your rental property’, September 2026

The deadline is determined by where the rental property is located, rather than where the landlord lives.

Landlords with properties in more than one region will also be able to register them together from 15th December 2026 if they choose to, rather than waiting for each individual regional window.

Once the three-month registration period for a region has passed, councils will be able to begin enforcement activity against landlords who should have registered but haven't.

Landlords will need to register by the deadline for the region their property is located in, with the final registration deadline falling on 14 November 2027 for properties in the South West.

Which properties need to be registered?

There's an important distinction during the initial roll-out.

Landlords will initially only be required to register properties that are currently under let, or that become let during the roll-out period.

If a property is unoccupied, landlords don't need to register it yet.

However, this is set to change.

The Government has confirmed that, under future legislation, landlords will also need to register unoccupied properties before they or their agent market them for let.

At that point, landlords and letting agents will also need to make sure the relevant unique landlord and property identifiers are included on property adverts.

The Government hasn't yet confirmed when this next stage will come into force, and further guidance is expected.

How much will registration cost?

The Government has confirmed an annual registration fee of £65 per property.

That means a landlord with one rental property will pay £65 each year, while a landlord with a portfolio of ten properties would pay £650 annually.

Registration will need to be renewed each year, making this an ongoing requirement rather than a one-off exercise.

The Government says the fee will help cover the cost of operating the service and support activity to tackle non-compliance across the PRS.

What information will landlords need to provide?

We now have much more detail about what landlords will need to have ready.

As well as information about themselves or their organisation, landlords will need to provide information about each property, including:

• • Property address and type
  • Ownership type
  • Number of bedrooms
  • Whether the property is currently let
  • Number of occupants and households
  • Rent charged and payment frequency
  • Whether utilities are included in the rent
  • Whether the property requires an HMO, additional or selective licence and, where available, the relevant licence numbers
  • Furnishing status
  • Gas safety information
  • Electrical safety information, including an EICR or relevant EIC
  • EPC information
  • Details of any relevant Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES) exemption

For agents, much of this should look familiar. Professional letting agents may already hold a significant amount of the property and compliance information landlords will need to complete their registration.

That makes accurate, accessible property and compliance data increasingly important as the roll-out approaches.

Can letting agents register properties on behalf of landlords?

Agents can support landlords, but the Government has made an important distinction clear: registration remains the landlord's responsibility.

Landlords will be responsible for starting and ending the registration process and will remain responsible for ensuring all of the required information is provided.

However, landlords will be able to agree for their letting agent or property manager to provide certain information on their behalf.

Exactly which information agents will be able to provide hasn't yet been confirmed. The Government says specific guidance for letting agents and property managers will be published before launch.

So agents won't simply be able to take the entire registration process off their landlords’ hands.

Instead, their role is likely to be about making the process as straightforward as possible: ensuring landlords understand when they need to act, keeping underlying property and compliance information accurate, and making that information easy to access when registration is due.

What does the service mean for agency technology?

There's another practical implication for letting agents: the systems they use will need to keep pace with the new requirements.

The Government has already confirmed that, in future, registration will need to happen before an unoccupied property can be marketed. Landlords and agents will also need to include unique landlord and property identifiers on property adverts.

For agents, that means registration could eventually become another important part of the compliance process.

Agency CRMs and property management platforms will therefore need to consider how relevant registration and property information is captured, stored and passed through to property advertising.

The same applies to licensing. With landlords asked to provide details of HMO, additional and selective licences - including licence numbers where available - having accurate licensing information against a property will become increasingly important.

For agencies managing hundreds or thousands of properties, good data infrastructure could make the difference between another major administrative exercise and a much more manageable compliance process.

Is the service the same as the Private Rented Sector Landlord Ombudsman?

No. The PRS database and the new Private Rented Sector Landlord Ombudsman are separate parts of the Renters' Rights Act.

Broadly speaking, the database is designed to improve information and transparency across the sector, while the Ombudsman will provide tenants with a route to resolve complaints against landlords outside the courts.

For letting agents and landlords, however, both form part of a much wider shift in regulation across the PRS. 

That's another reason why maintaining accurate records and having clear compliance processes is becoming increasingly important.

What should letting agents do now?

The first registration window doesn't open until December, but agents can start preparing now.

1. Identify which landlords and properties will need registering

The initial requirement applies to properties already under let or which become let during roll-out. Understand which properties in your portfolio fall within each regional registration window.

2. Start communicating with landlords around this

Landlords will need to initiate registration themselves and remain responsible for providing all the required information. Make sure clients understand their responsibility, the £65 annual fee and when they'll need to act.

3. Check your property and compliance data

Make sure information such as EPCs, gas safety records, EICRs and property licensing details is accurate and accessible. It's also worth checking whether your systems currently capture all the information landlords will need.

4. Think about how you'll make registration easier for landlords

Agents already hold a significant amount of the information required for registration. Consider how you can make that information easily accessible to landlords rather than leaving them to assemble it themselves.

5. Watch for further agent guidance

The Government has promised further guidance before launch explaining exactly what agents and property managers will be able to provide on a landlord's behalf.

Another compliance requirement is here - but agents can take away some of the complexity

The Government's aim with the PRS database is to create greater transparency across the Private Rented Sector: giving councils better information to tackle poor practice, helping responsible landlords demonstrate their standards and, eventually, giving tenants more information about who they're renting from.

Like most aspects of the Renters’ Rights Act, those are positive aims but there will also be practical consequences for landlords and agents. There’s no getting away from the fact that the need to register creates another ongoing compliance and administrative requirement for landlords, but it is also why landlords need their letting agents as much, if not more, than ever before.

Every new Government requirement has a knock-on effect for letting agents, who are often the people helping landlords understand regulatory changes and managing much of the associated compliance and administration.

For agents, however, the opportunity isn't necessarily to take responsibility for registration. It's to take away as much of the complexity surrounding it as possible. Agents already hold much of the property and compliance information landlords will need. With the right systems, accurate records and clear communication, they can make it far easier for landlords to fulfil their responsibilities.

At Goodlord, we're looking at how we can support that process, including how we can make the relevant property and compliance information we hold easily accessible to landlords when they're ready to register.

And this will become increasingly important. Under future legislation, unoccupied properties will need to be registered before they're marketed, with landlords and agents also required to include registered landlord and property identifiers on adverts.

The first registration window opens in the West Midlands on 15 December, 2026, with the regional roll-out concluding on 14 November 2027.

We'll continue to update agents as further guidance is published.

For more on how Goodlord can help you support your landlords, take a look at our tenancy management platform and book a demo now.