Selling A Rental Property After Section 21: What Landlords Need To Know

For many landlords, one of the biggest questions surrounding the abolition of Section 21 was what would happen if they simply wanted to sell their rental property.

In the past, Section 21 of the Housing Act 1988 provided landlords with a route for recovering possession without having to demonstrate that the tenant had breached their tenancy. However, following the changes introduced by the Renters’ Rights Act 2025, landlords in England can no longer use Section 21 notices.

The new tenancy system came into force on 1 May 2026. Since then, landlords who want to regain possession of a privately rented property generally need to rely on one of the possession grounds contained within Section 8 of the Housing Act 1988.

Importantly, selling your property remains a legitimate reason for recovering possession. However, the procedure is now different and landlords need to allow considerably more time when planning a sale.

Can You Still Ask A Tenant To Leave If You Want To Sell?

Yes.

The abolition of Section 21 does not mean landlords have lost the ability to recover their property when they genuinely intend to sell it.

Instead, the Renters’ Rights Act introduced Ground 1A – Sale of Dwelling House.

Ground 1A is specifically designed for situations where a landlord intends to sell the property. It is a mandatory possession ground, meaning that if the landlord can demonstrate to the court that the requirements of the ground have been met, the court must grant a possession order.

However, landlords cannot simply ask their tenants to leave whenever they decide that they would like to put the property on the market. There are important restrictions surrounding when Ground 1A can be used.

The First 12 Months Of A Tenancy Are Protected

One of the biggest changes landlords need to understand is the new 12-month protected period.

A tenant cannot be required to leave under Ground 1A during the first 12 months of a new tenancy.

This means that landlords need to consider their longer-term plans before taking on a new tenant. If there is a realistic possibility that you may need to sell a property within the following year, entering into a new tenancy could significantly affect when you are able to obtain vacant possession.

There is an important distinction, however.

A landlord can serve a Ground 1A notice during those first 12 months, but the notice cannot require possession before the 12-month protected period has expired.

For example, imagine that a tenant has lived in a property for eight months and the landlord decides to sell.

The landlord could potentially serve the relevant notice at that point, giving the required four months' notice. The notice would then expire once the tenant had reached 12 months in the property.

If the tenancy had only been running for four months, however, simply giving four months' notice would not be sufficient because this would require the tenant to leave before the end of the protected period.

Planning ahead is therefore considerably more important under the new system.

How Much Notice Does A Landlord Need To Give?

For Ground 1A, landlords must provide at least four months' notice before they can apply to the court for a possession order.

This is considerably longer than landlords may have been accustomed to under the old Section 21 system.

The government's current guidance confirms both the four-month notice requirement and the rule preventing Ground 1A from requiring possession during the first 12 months of a new tenancy.

The practical effect is that landlords thinking about selling should start preparing well in advance.

A decision to sell is unlikely to translate into immediate vacant possession. Even once the notice period has expired, there is no guarantee that the tenant will leave voluntarily on that date.

What Notice Should Landlords Serve?

Since 1 May 2026, landlords seeking possession under the new system generally need to serve a Section 8 notice using Form 3A, or a form substantially to the same effect.

The notice needs to identify the possession ground being relied upon and explain why the landlord believes that ground applies.

For a landlord selling their property, that would normally mean relying upon Ground 1A and making clear that there is a genuine intention to sell.

Completing the notice correctly is important. Government guidance warns that an incomplete or inaccurate notice could result in a possession claim being delayed or dismissed if the case subsequently goes to court.

Landlords should therefore avoid treating the notice as a simple administrative formality.

What Happens If The Tenant Doesn't Leave?

Serving a Ground 1A notice does not itself physically end the tenancy or allow a landlord to remove the tenant.

If the tenant leaves voluntarily once the notice expires, the landlord can recover possession without needing to pursue the matter further through the courts.

However, if the tenant remains in the property after the notice period has expired, the landlord will normally need to apply to the court for a possession order.

The landlord may then have to provide evidence demonstrating that Ground 1A genuinely applies.

Because Ground 1A is mandatory, the court should grant possession if it is satisfied that the legal requirements have been met.

Landlords should nevertheless allow for the possibility of court proceedings when deciding when to instruct an estate agent, arrange a mortgage redemption, make commitments relating to another property or agree completion dates.

A four-month notice period does not necessarily mean you will have vacant possession exactly four months later.

You Need To Genuinely Intend To Sell

Ground 1A is not intended to become a replacement version of Section 21.

It exists to allow landlords to recover possession because they genuinely intend to sell the property.

This distinction is important because the Renters’ Rights Act also introduced restrictions designed to prevent landlords from claiming that they intend to sell a property merely to remove a tenant and then immediately place it back onto the rental market.

After relying on Ground 1A, landlords are generally subject to a 12-month restricted period during which they cannot re-let or remarket the property for rent. Government guidance explains that this restriction covers actions such as advertising the property as available to rent or, when carrying out lettings agency work, telling someone that it may be available. There are limited exceptions.

The restriction makes it particularly important that landlords are confident about their decision before using Ground 1A.

Changing your mind about selling after recovering possession is no longer necessarily as straightforward as simply finding another tenant.

Make Sure The Tenancy Is Compliant

Landlords should also check that the tenancy and their wider legal responsibilities are in order before beginning possession proceedings.

For example, current government guidance states that a court cannot make a possession order where a tenancy deposit that should have been protected has not been placed into a government-approved tenancy deposit scheme.

There may also be other legal and procedural requirements relevant to the individual tenancy and the possession ground being used.

This makes good record keeping increasingly important.

Landlords should retain copies of tenancy documentation, notices, deposit information, correspondence with tenants and relevant records relating to their decision to sell.

If possession proceedings become necessary, having clear records can make it much easier to demonstrate that the correct process has been followed.

Should You Tell Your Tenant That You Are Planning To Sell?

Where possible, communication can make the process considerably easier.

Receiving notice that a home is going to be sold can naturally create uncertainty for tenants. Giving tenants clear information about what is happening, the likely timetable and what will be expected of them can help prevent misunderstandings.

It can also make practical arrangements easier.

For example, a landlord may eventually need access for valuations, photography, surveys or viewings. These arrangements should always be handled appropriately and in accordance with the tenant's rights and the tenancy agreement.

A cooperative relationship between landlord and tenant can make preparing a rental property for sale significantly less stressful for everyone involved.

Plan The Sale Around The Possession Process

Perhaps the biggest practical lesson from the abolition of Section 21 is that landlords now need to think further ahead.

If you know you are likely to sell a rental property, consider the possession timetable before making commitments elsewhere.

Depending on the circumstances, the process might include:

1. Deciding that you genuinely intend to sell.

2. Checking how long the current tenancy has been running.

3. Confirming that Ground 1A is available.

4. Serving the correct Section 8 notice.

5. Allowing the required notice period to expire.

6. Recovering possession voluntarily or, if necessary, applying to court.

7. Preparing the property for sale and progressing the transaction.

Problems are more likely to arise when landlords work backwards from an unrealistic completion date rather than allowing the possession process to determine the timetable.

Selling A Rental Property Is Still Possible

The abolition of Section 21 has undoubtedly changed the way landlords regain possession of rented homes in England, but it has not removed their ability to sell.

Ground 1A provides landlords with a clear possession route where there is a genuine intention to sell the property.

The important differences are the 12-month protected period at the beginning of a tenancy, the four-month notice requirement and the restrictions that apply after Ground 1A has been used.

For landlords, this makes preparation more important than ever.

Rather than waiting until a sale becomes urgent, it makes sense to consider your plans well in advance, check that your tenancy documentation is compliant and understand the possession process before serving notice.

With the right preparation, landlords can still regain possession in order to sell. The process simply needs to be approached differently under the post-Section 21 system.