The Renters' Rights Act is changing the rules. Is your property portfolio ready?
If you're a landlord, you've probably seen the headlines about the Renters' Rights Act.
The Act has brought in new protections for tenants such as no more ‘no fault’ evictions or fixed contracts and fairer rent rules, and while most of it applies only in England, the parts dealing with discrimination now apply in Scotland too.
In plain terms: it's now a criminal offence for landlords or letting agents to treat people differently because they have children or because they receive benefits - for example, by turning down enquiries or viewings, or advertising a property as ‘no DSS’.
Affordability checks are still completely fine. What matters is that a tenant is judged on whether they can pay the rent, not on where their income comes from. Any tenancy terms - and even insurance or mortgage conditions - that try to exclude families or benefit claimants no longer hold. Breaching the rules can mean a fine of up to £1,000, and could count against you in the "fit and proper person" test for landlord registration.
This sits alongside wider change in Scotland, with the Housing (Scotland) Act 2025 also reshaping things such as rent increases and tenancy succession. The direction of travel is clear: more rights for tenants, and more for landlords to stay on top of.
A good moment to step back
If you let property, all of this adds up - and it's easy to deal with each new rule or cost as it lands, rather than looking at the bigger picture.
That's where we can help. A lot of landlords have never actually sat down with a financial adviser. You might have an accountant who looks at the numbers transactionally; you may have moved properties into a limited company; and your mortgages were probably arranged one at a time. But has anyone looked at everything together?
That's exactly what a portfolio review does. We look at your borrowing across the whole portfolio and whether it's still working as hard as it could, at how your properties are structured, and at the protection sitting behind it all - your insurances, and what would happen to the portfolio, and your family, if something went wrong. Because we're independent and whole-of-market, we're not tied to any single lender or provider. We can look right across the market and tell you what we genuinely believe is right for you.
Why now, and why Glasgow?
Glasgow has one of the largest rental populations in Scotland - a big student community and strong demand all year round - so plenty of landlords in our area are feeling the weight of these changes. With the regulations having shifted, it's a natural moment to take stock.
To help with that, we're offering a complimentary portfolio review to all landlords who get in touch before the end of July.
We'll look at your borrowing, protection arrangements and longer-term objectives, helping you understand how your property investments fit alongside the rest of your financial plan.
If you'd like to talk it through, get in touch and book a short call and we’ll take it from there.
Please note: Your property may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage.