An email today from TfP :

These agreements are nearing completion and will be release early next week. They SHOULD NOT BE USED until the 1 May but we are releasing them a little early as some of you will need time to embed them in the software.

If you set up a tenancy on the 30 April you should still use the current AST (as legally you cannot set up an APT till they exist, currently expected to be the 1 May). You then just give the information sheet between the 1 and 31 May.

The new revision will be revision 4 and will be completely different. We are only releasing the tenancy in the first phase while we complete other document changes. These will come out before the 1 May too.

We will email you again next week to confirm you can download the new tenancy agreements and we will email again when the other documents are uploaded.

(If you already have an RSign or Docusign account added to Rentman you can send the Information Sheet via those but you don’t need a signature and it may waste your existing quota.)

Next version of Rentman (5.003.363) has a new list showing tenants who have not yet been sent this document and the ‘send’ button has options to choose between sending via regular email, RSign, Docusign and RMail.

All current tenancies are shown but only managed tenancies are ticked to send. You are required to send to all managed tenancies even if the landlord has already sent the information sheet themseleves. You are not required in law to send to Let Only tenancies but you may offer this service to landlords so they are there on the list (right click the send checkbox to select all),

There is a new ‘package’ with a cover letter being sent. You have the ability to customise the document ‘RRA Cover Letter’ and add other documents if you wish. The government’s Information Sheet is downloaded and included in the package.

Note : The guidance says you have to serve this information sheet on “each tenant”. People are interpreting this to mean each individual making up “the tenant”. But “jointly and severally” still applies. So the email/envelope must be addressed to all individuals BUT it only needs be received by one of them to be considered received by all. We still recommend sending to each individual but where you don’t have an email address for one of them or an email is undelivered it shouldn’t matter if at least one email was delivered.

You will be able to send the new prescribed information to current tenants on 1st May using a built-in RPost account (see https://rpost.com/ ) The cost will be 65p per recipient (+VAT) and will be added to your Rentman bill.

You don’t need to create your own account with RPost for this one-off but you may wish to after 1st May so as to have proof of all emails sent.

Re-iterating a previous post… legal advice from TfP recommends NOT sending until 1st May (the legal requirement is to send by 31st May)

RPost say :

“RMail is the only method of Proof of Email delivery and content: RMail returns a “Registered Receipt” to the sender which is a legally binding, time-stamped document that proves exactly what was sent, when it was sent, and that it was received.“

The recommendation remains to issue an AST and let it convert automatically to APT on 1^st May. The worry is that issuing what we think is a valid APT now (for tenancies beginning after 1^st may) may lead to uncertainty if the regulations change between now and then.

Letting an AST automatically convert leaves you on more solid ground.

The government has now issued more regulations. And we have the prescribed info that replaces the HowToRent guide; the regulations stipulate that this must be issued to all extant tenants between now and 31st May; TfP are advising patience until 1st May. This should probably be sent by registered email or for digital signing and Rentman will do this for you (more on which later this week).

New versions of Sections 8 and 13 notices have been posted on the Government website but they are marked as “Draft”; they will be incorporated as is into Rentman this week but we are expecting changes.

1st May is confirmed as the commencement date and there likely won’t be a postponement.

February’s webinar is now available here : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4p1zp2WGj9o

There will be another update webinar in April once we have the regulations and new documents.

If you haven’t already attended one of TfP’s RRA seminars i would strongly recommend you do so. https://www.tfponline.co.uk/Public/EventsShop.aspx#Course_1537

Rentman will be ready and February’s webinar will discuss the changes already made.

There are regulations yet to be finalised by the government hence we’re still waiting on the new documents but they too will be made ready in time.

N.B. Although the commencement date for the changes in the Act to become effective is scheduled for 1st May 2026…. it is worth remembering when similar changes were made in Wales in 2022 the commencement date was originally set as 1st July 2022 but as that deadline approached it was re-scheduled to 1st December 2022.
Obviously we need to be ready but can’t commit just yet to, for instance, converting all tenancies due to end after 1st May to monthly periodic.

Thank you. Your responses are appreciated and will help us plan our own attendance in coming years.

New features currently being developed:

• Referencing through LetAlliance
• Uploads to Homesearch (and Homesearch reports built into Rentman)
• Open Banking
• Block Management

These, of course, will be released alongside any changes required by Renter’s Rights legislation.

The LetAlliance and Homesearch integrations will be ready this week. Open Banking and Block Management will be Beta testing first quarter 2026.

24 Dec : 0900 – noon
25 Dec : Closed
26 Dec : Closed
27 Dec : Email only
29 Dec : 0900 – 1700
30 Dec : 0900 – 1700
31 Dec : 0900 – noon
1 Jan : Closed
2 Jan : 0900 – 1700

Mailboxes will be monitored and if there’s an emergency we will do our best to respond ASAP.