The Government hints at ending Insured Deposit Schemes
The Government has announced plans to abolish insured tenancy deposit schemes which means landlords and letting agents will no longer be permitted to hold tenants' deposits in their client accounts, even where those deposits are protected through an approved insurance-backed scheme.
Housing Minister Matthew Pennycook confirmed that the Government intends to move to a single custodial model, requiring all tenancy deposits to be transferred to an authorised custodial tenancy deposit scheme at the outset of the tenancy.
The proposal forms part of the Government's wider programme of housing reform and is intended to strengthen consumer protection by ensuring that tenancy deposits are always held by an independent third party.
Renters’ Rights Act - New £7000.00 Fines Implemented
From 22nd June 2026, councils can issue fines of up to £7,000.00 if landlords are found to have serious hazards in their rented properties. From:-
Landlords who don’t fix dangerous problems like damp and mould now face fines of up to £7,000
New power now in force in the Renters’ Rights Act so councils can take stronger action where landlords fail to fix problems, alongside existing enforcement powers
New penalty will speed up fixes, as the Housing Secretary calls on councils to use all powers at their disposal to tackle poor conditions
Private renters will see stronger action on dangerous problems like severe damp and mould, following a new government crackdown.
Councils can now issue fines (from Monday 22 June) of up to £7,000.00 if landlords refuse to fix poor conditions.
Breaking News - Government Publishes Home Buying and Selling Roadmap
The UK Government has published a roadmap its plans to reform the Home Buying and Selling Process to make transactions easier, quicker and more efficient.
The roadmap sets out a process which is structured, digital with the objective of reducing delays and sales falling through.
There will also be greater emphasis on agents to be thorough when gathering, sharing and using information.
Update to Anti-Money Laundering Regulations
Article written by David Smith - 17th June 2026
The Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing (Amendment) Regulations 2026 were made on 9 June. These come into effect automatically 21 days after they were made, so will be in effect as from 30 June.
I wrote briefly about the draft regulations here when they were made available.
By far and away the most crucial and immediate change is that the €10,000 pcm rent threshold for compulsory AML checks for higher value tenancies changes to £10,000. This is quite a change as €10,000 is closer to £8,650 so there is quite a big jump here. This is also quite a key number as there are a fair few rental properties in the higher-end sector that would be picked up by a threshold at £8,500 but not by a threshold at £10,000 so I would anticipate that this will take a reasonable chunk of property out of AML controls and will give agents a lot more flexibility in this area.