Rent regulation in England and Wales

Rent regulation in England and Wales is the part of English land law that creates rights and obligations for tenants and landlords.

The main areas of regulation concern:

• the mechanisms for regulating prices (historically called "rent control"). Since the Housing Act 1980 (c. 51), prices are generally left for landlords to fix except in the "affordable" sector where councils and housing associations manage around 4.4 million homes which are subject to rent regulation.
• the reasons that a person can be evicted. Since the Housing Act 1996 (c. 52), most tenancies can be terminated on their expiry for any reason.
• the obligations to repair and maintain the property, under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 (c. 70).

In general, people renting homes or real property may agree with a landlord to any contract terms they like, but some rights and duties are made compulsory. Historically, the United Kingdom sought to ensure fair rents, prevent evictions without a fair reason, and placed obligations on landlords to properly maintain premises. Such regulation seeks to redress the inequality of bargaining power between landlords and tenants in a market where there is unlimited freedom of contract. Most rights for tenants were abolished by the Housing Act 1980 (c. 51) and in subsequent legislation through the 1980s. The remaining legislation is found in the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 (2 & 3 Eliz. 2. c. 56), which gives rights to business tenants, and the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 (c. 70) which gives some rights, although fewer, to people renting for the purpose of a home.