Fixed Price, Fair Rent: The Ban on Bidding Wars For Rental Properties
- DNB Future Properties
- Dec 12, 2025
- 6 min read
Updated: Jan 23
Fixed Price, Fair Rent: The Ban on Bidding Wars For Rental Properties. The Renters' Rights Act 2025 aims to fundamentally reset the power dynamic between tenants and landlords. One of the most significant changes targeting market practice is the introduction of a complete ban on rental bidding wars.
This new rule is a direct response to a hyper-competitive rental market where prospective tenants have often felt pressured to offer above the advertised price just to secure a home.
The legislation makes it illegal for landlords and letting agents to ask for, encourage, or accept any rent offer above the price initially advertised. The message is clear: the advertised price is the final price.
What the Ban on Bidding Requires
This measure is designed to inject transparency and fairness into the tenant-finding process, removing the "auction" environment that has driven up rents and caused stress for applicants.
1. Mandatory Advertised Rent
• Fixed Price: Landlords and agents are now legally required to publish a specific asking rent for the property in all written advertisements. Ambiguous language like "offers over" or "rent negotiable" that encourages bidding will be illegal.
• The Rule: The price you advertise is the maximum price you can accept from a prospective tenant.
2. Prohibition on Accepting Higher Offers
• No Encouragement: It is explicitly illegal to invite or encourage a prospective tenant to pay a rent higher than the proposed rent.
• No Acceptance, Even if Voluntary: Crucially, the law goes further than just preventing encouragement. It is illegal to accept a higher offer even if the tenant makes it unilaterally and without prompting. If a tenant offers £100 over the advertised rate, the landlord must refuse and only proceed at the advertised price.
3. Preventing Prohibited Payments
The Act also restricts landlords from asking for or accepting prohibited rent in advance payments before a lease is entered into, outside of a security deposit (capped at 5 weeks' rent) and the first month's rent once the tenancy agreement is signed.
The Impact on Landlord Strategy
The ban eliminates the ability to use the tenant market to determine the maximum rental yield through competition. This forces landlords to be more strategic and data-driven in their initial pricing decisions.
Old Strategy (Bidding Allowed)
Test the Market: Advertise lower to generate high interest and start a bidding war.
Tenant Selection: Often skewed toward the highest bidder.
Process: Unpredictable, stressful for tenants.
New Strategy (Bidding Banned)
Set Strategic Market Price: Conduct thorough local market analysis to set the maximum achievable rent accurately from day one. Focus purely on suitability, references, and reliability, regardless of the tenant’s willingness to pay more.
Process: Streamlined, fixed-price model, promoting professional conduct.
The Risk of Non-Compliance
Local authorities will be given enforcement powers to police the ban on rental bidding. Failure to comply with the rules on advertising and accepting higher rent is a breach that can result in significant financial penalties.
• Fines: Landlords or agents found to be in breach of the anti-bidding rules face civil penalties of up to £7,000 for a first offence. Repeat or serious breaches can lead to fines of up to £40,000.
• Database: Breaches will likely be recorded on the new Private Rented Sector (PRS) Database, affecting a landlord's reputation and compliance history.
Your Action Point: Price Right, Price Once
The end of bidding wars means your initial price setting is critical. You need to be competitive enough to attract high-quality tenants quickly, but high enough to achieve your desired yield, as you won't have the option to drive the price up through competition later.
Proactively engage with your letting agent (if you use one) to perform a detailed, defensible market assessment before listing any property. Your focus must now shift entirely from price competition to tenant suitability and efficient process.
📑 Renters Rights Act 2025: Full Blog Series Index
This is one of a 10-part series exploring the Renters Rights Act 2025. Check out the rest of the posts below to understand all the changes coming to the private rented sector.
The Renter’s Rights Act 2025 formally known as the Renters Reform Bill has officially become law, bringing significant changes to the private rented sector in England.
The Landlord's Essential Guide to the Renter's Rights Act 2025 formally known as the Renter’s Reform Bill: 10 Critical Q&As. The Renters' Rights Act 2025 is a landmark piece of UK legislation designed to fundamentally rebalance the power dynamic in the private rented sector.
Read about how the end of 'no-fault' evictions will fundamentally change tenancy agreements and provide tenants with greater security of tenure.
Read about the new and reformed mandatory and discretionary grounds that landlords must now use when seeking to regain possession of their property
Discover the move away from fixed-term tenancies and how all new tenancies will now operate as periodic tenancies from day one.
We detail the new measures introduced to prevent landlords and agents from encouraging or participating in unfair rent bidding wars among prospective tenants.
Understand the new rule that restricts landlords from increasing rent more than once every 12 months, providing tenants with more financial certainty.
Explore the new legal duties placed on landlords to prevent discrimination against certain groups, particularly those receiving benefits or with children.
The Renters' Rights Act 2025 is not just about evictions; it’s about property quality. For the first time, the Decent Homes Standard (DHS), long applied to social housing, will be legally extended to the private rented sector.
We look at the new rules that make it easier for tenants to keep pets, requiring landlords to have a reasonable excuse to refuse a request.
Read about the role of the new Ombudsman and how it will provide a mandatory, impartial route for tenants and landlords to resolve disputes outside of court.
Read about the creation of the new portal that will require all landlords to register their properties and comply with certain standards to operate legally.
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This articles may have been drafted prior to release. Some content and images may have been generated by AI. All information is believed to be correct at the time of writing. The content and information provided in this blog post series are based on a synthesis of publicly available government guidance, parliamentary documents, industry analyses, and news reports regarding the Renters' Rights Act 2025. We may have utilised various external sources for this information. We make no representations or warranties, express or implied, about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, or suitability of the information gathered from these sources. We assume no responsibility, nor any affiliation, with the external sources used; the content is presented solely for informational purposes. You should always seek independent professional and legal advice before making any decisions related to property management or compliance with new legislation.
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