The private rental sector database
One of the provisions of the Renters’ Rights Act is a new Private Rented Sector (PRS) Database. Every landlord in England must register on this new service, which will be managed through a new Government website branded "Register your Rental Property."
The database goes live in the West Midlands on 15 December 2026 and will be rolled out region by region across England over the following twelve months.
NB – The regulations are still progressing through Parliament and could be subject to change. The information below is correct at the time of writing, 13th October 2026.
Why is the PRS database being introduced?
The database is being introduced as one of the key provisions of the Renters’ Right Act, brought in by Government to make the Private Renter Sector more open and transparent for tenants. The Act represents the biggest change to the sector in decades.
The PRS Database is designed to give potential tenants greater information about a property they are interested in renting before they commit to renting it, whilst giving Local Authorities better data to ensure landlords are complying with the required lettings legislation.
What will landlords need to register?
Landlords will need to create two separate items:
- A landlord entry: the landlords’ name and contact details, or company details if the property is held through a corporate structure.
- A dwelling entry: one for each individual rented property owned by the landlord.
What information will a landlord need to provide?
For each property the landlord will need to provide certain information:
- The property address and dwelling type
- Details of the number of occupants and households living in the property
- A current gas safety record for the property
- A current Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR) or Electrical Installation Certificate for the property
- The Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) for the property, or details of when the current tenancy started if the latest EPC has expired mid-tenancy
- Details of any Selective, Additional or Mandatory HMO licence that applies.
What is the cost of registration?
The Government has confirmed a fee of £65 per individual property per year. Registrations will need be renewed annually for each property. For a landlord with a portfolio, that cost scales with the number of properties.
Regional registration
The database is being launched region by region, based on the location of the property, starting in December. Once each regional window is open, landlords have a three-month window in which to register.
A breakdown of the regions and their expected roll-out dates are below:
| Region | Registration Opens | Deadline | Impacted Councils |
|---|---|---|---|
| West Midlands | 15-Dec-26 | 14-Mar-27 | Birmingham City Council, Coventry City Council, Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council, Herefordshire Council, Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council, Shropshire Council, Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council, Staffordshire County Council, Stoke-on-Trent City Council, Telford and Wrekin Council, Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council, Warwickshire County Council, Wolverhampton City Council and Worcestershire County Council |
| East of England | 15-Jan-27 | 14-Apr-27 | Bedford Borough Council, Cambridgeshire County Council, Central Bedfordshire Council, Essex County Council, Hertfordshire County Council, Luton Borough Council, Norfolk County Council, Peterborough City Council, Southend-on-Sea City Council, Suffolk County Council and Thurrock Council |
| East Midlands | 15-Feb-27 | 14-May-27 | Derby City Council, Derbyshire County Council, Leicester City Council, Leicestershire County Council, Lincolnshire County Council, North Northamptonshire Council, Nottingham City Council, Nottinghamshire County Council, Rutland County Council and West Northamptonshire Council |
| South East | 15-Mar-27 | 14-Jun-27 | Bracknell Forest Borough Council, Brighton & Hove City Council, Buckinghamshire Council, East Sussex County Council, Hampshire County Council, Isle of Wight Council, Kent County Council, Medway Council, Milton Keynes Council, Oxfordshire County Council, Portsmouth City Council, Reading Borough Council, Slough Borough Council, Southampton City Council, Surrey County Council, West Berkshire Council, West Sussex County Council, the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead and Wokingham Council |
| Yorkshire & the Humber | 15-Apr-27 | 14-Jul-27 | Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council, Bradford City Council, Calderdale Metropolitan Borough Council, City of York Council, Doncaster Metropolitan Borough Council, East Riding of Yorkshire Council, Kingston upon Hull City Council, Kirklees Metropolitan Council, Leeds City Council, North East Lincolnshire Council, North Lincolnshire Council, North Yorkshire Council, Rotherham Borough Council, Sheffield City Council and Wakefield Council |
| North West | 15-May-27 | 14-Aug-27 | Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council, Blackpool Borough Council, Bolton Metropolitan Borough Council, Bury Metropolitan Borough Council, Cheshire East Borough Council, Cheshire West and Chester Borough Council, Cumberland Council, Halton Borough Council, Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council, Lancashire County Council, Liverpool City Council, Manchester City Council, Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council, Rochdale Borough Council, St Helens Metropolitan Borough Council, Salford City Council, Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council, Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council, Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council, Trafford Metropolitan Borough Council, Warrington Borough Council, Westmorland and Furness Council, Wigan Metropolitan Borough Council and Wirral Metropolitan Borough Council |
| North East | 15-Jun-27 | 14-Sep-27 | Darlington Borough Council, Durham County Council, Gateshead Council, Hartlepool Borough Council, Middlesbrough Council, Newcastle upon Tyne City Council, North Tyneside Metropolitan Borough Council, Northumberland County Council, Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council, South Tyneside Council, Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council and Sunderland City Metropolitan Borough Council |
| London | 15-Jul-27 | 14-Oct-27 | City of London and the London boroughs of Barking and Dagenham, Barnet, Bexley, Brent, Bromley, Camden, Croydon, Ealing, Enfield, Greenwich, Hackney, Hammersmith and Fulham, Haringey, Harrow, Havering, Hillingdon, Hounslow, Islington, Kensington and Chelsea, Kingston upon Thames, Lambeth, Lewisham, Merton, Newham, Redbridge, Richmond upon Thames, Southwark, Sutton, Tower Hamlets, Waltham Forest, Wandsworth and Westminster |
| South West | 15-Aug-27 | 14-Nov-27 | Bath & North East Somerset Council, Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council, Bristol City Council, Cornwall Council, Council of the Isles of Scilly, Devon County Council, Dorset Council, Gloucestershire County Council, North Somerset Council, Plymouth City Council, Somerset Council, South Gloucestershire Council, Swindon Borough Council, Torbay Council and Wiltshire Council |
Do landlords have to wait to register until the window opens?
No, landlords do not have to wait until the registration window in their region opens. Instead, they can register when the database goes live in December, should they wish to.
Is the database an optional requirement?
No, this is not optional. Every landlord in England has to register both themselves and their properties. Letting or marketing a property without having registered a valid entry will be a breach of the Renters’ Rights Act.
What happens if you don't register?
Local authorities will hold enforcement powers. Civil penalties start at up to £7,000 for a first breach and rise to up to £40,000 for repeated or continuing non-compliance.
It is also expected that future legislation will prevent an unregistered property being marketed or let, and a missing entry could affect a landlord’s ability to pursue possession through the courts, although this is still to be confirmed.
How to get ahead
Once the registration window opens in a region, landlords have three months to comply. The information required is largely documentation you will hold already, but review your certificates, licensing and property ownership details; the coming months are an opportunity to get your paperwork in order.
Speak to your local branch today
As the regulations evolve, guidance may change and we will update information on this page appropriately. Contact your local branch and we will talk you through what the database means for your properties.