Selling a rented property with tenants in the UK

Last updated 26 Oct 2026

In England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, a landlord can sell a rented home with the tenant still living there, or end the tenancy first using that nation's own notice rules. The rules for getting vacant possession differ by nation: England and Scotland have a specific sale ground, Wales and Northern Ireland use their general landlord's notice.

Selling with the tenant in place

You do not need a possession ground to sell a home with the tenancy running. The buyer takes the property subject to the tenancy and becomes the landlord. In Northern Ireland, nidirect's deposit information for tenants says the scheme administrator "will continue to protect your deposit until the end of the tenancy" when a landlord sells.

If the buyer wants the home empty, the steps below apply. The table summarises them.

Nation	Route to vacant possession for a sale	Minimum notice	Earliest point
England	Section 8 notice on Ground 1A (Form 3A)	4 months	Notice cannot expire in the first 12 months of the tenancy
Scotland	Notice to leave on eviction ground 1, then a First-tier Tribunal order	84 days (28 days if the tenant has lived there six months or less)	Any time, but the Tribunal must find eviction reasonable
Wales	Landlord's notice under section 173 (periodic standard contract)	6 months	Not given in the first six months of occupation
Northern Ireland	Written notice to quit	4, 8 or 12 weeks, by length of tenancy	A fixed term must have ended

England: Ground 1A

Since 1 May 2026, section 21 is gone and a landlord who wants to sell with vacant possession uses Ground 1A in Schedule 2 to the Housing Act 1988. It is a mandatory ground: if the landlord proves it, the court must order possession.

What it needs. The landlord intends to sell the freehold or leasehold, or to grant a lease of more than 21 years.
The first 12 months. GOV.UK's grounds for possession guidance says you cannot use Ground 1A "within the first 12 months of a new tenancy". Notice can be given earlier, but it "cannot expire before the 12 month period has ended".
Notice. Ground 1A needs 4 months' notice on Form 3A, under section 8 of the Housing Act 1988.
Older lifetime tenancies. GOV.UK says Ground 1A cannot be used where the tenant has an assured tenancy created before 1 May 2026 that was not an assured shorthold tenancy.

England: the 12-month ban on re-letting

If the sale falls through, you cannot simply let the home again. Section 16E of the Housing Act 1988 bars the landlord from letting the home on a tenancy of 21 years or less, or under a paid licence, during the "restricted period". It also bars marketing it to let in that time.

Section 16M sets the restricted period. It runs from the day the notice is served to 12 months after the earliest date in the notice for court proceedings. With a 4-month notice, that is about 16 months from service.

The ban continues whether or not the tenant leaves. Section 16F lists narrow exceptions, such as a licence to a buyer who has agreed to purchase, and some shared owners who gave written warning before the tenancy.

Breaching the ban is an offence under section 16J. As an alternative to prosecution, the council can impose a financial penalty of up to £40,000 under section 16K.

The other possession grounds and their notice periods are in section 21 abolished: how landlords get possession now.

Scotland: eviction ground 1

In Scotland, a landlord who wants to sell ends a private residential tenancy with a notice to leave on ground 1, "landlord intends to sell", in Schedule 3 to the Private Housing (Tenancies) (Scotland) Act 2016. The First-tier Tribunal may find the ground applies if:

the landlord is entitled to sell the property;
the landlord intends to sell it for market value, or at least put it up for sale, within 3 months of the tenant leaving;
the Tribunal is satisfied that it is reasonable to issue an eviction order.

Schedule 3 gives examples of evidence of the intention to sell: a letter of engagement from a solicitor or estate agent, or a recently prepared document that section 98 of the Housing (Scotland) Act 2006 requires anyone marketing the property to hold.

The notice period under section 54 is 84 days, or 28 days if the tenant has been entitled to occupy for six months or less. A separate ground 2 covers a lender selling the property.

If a landlord misleads a tenant or the Tribunal into ending a tenancy, the former tenant can apply for compensation. The Scottish Government's ending a tenancy page says that from 6 October 2026 it is between 3 and 36 times the monthly rent. Where the monthly rent is below £840, £840 is used instead.

More on notices to leave and the other grounds: Scotland's private residential tenancy.

Wales: the section 173 landlord's notice

The Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016 has no possession ground specifically for a landlord who wants to sell. For a periodic standard contract, the usual route is a landlord's notice under section 173, which needs no reason.

The Welsh Government's landlord FAQ (updated 29 April 2026) says the notice "may only be served after the first six months of occupation" and may not be "less than six months" long. It also says a fixed-term contract "cannot generally be ended by issuing a Landlord's Notice during the fixed term period".

The same FAQ says a landlord cannot issue a landlord's notice while not meeting the fitness requirements, which include smoke alarms and a valid electrical condition report. See the Renting Homes (Wales) Act guide for the written statement rules that also affect section 173.

Northern Ireland: notice to quit

Northern Ireland's private tenancy law has no separate sale ground. nidirect's private rent and tenancies page sets the landlord's minimum written notice to quit:

at least 4 weeks if the tenancy has lasted up to 12 months;
at least 8 weeks if it has lasted more than 12 months and up to 10 years;
at least 12 weeks after more than 10 years.

If the tenant stays after the notice ends, nidirect's protection against eviction page says the landlord can only recover possession through the courts.

Longer notice periods are written into the Private Tenancies Act (Northern Ireland) 2022 but are not in force. Section 14(6) says they start only with regulations that had not been made when this page was checked, so there is no date yet. See the Northern Ireland guide for the details.

Before you sell: the paperwork a buyer will ask for

A buyer taking on a tenancy will usually want the current gas safety record, electrical report, EPC and deposit protection details. Letbook is a compliance tracker for landlords that keeps those dates and certificate files per property, with a dated timeline of notes. It does not serve notices or handle a sale. When a sale completes you can record the tenancy's end date and archive the property. Sign up free.

Sources

Facts checked on 26 October 2026. For England this page relies on the 1 May 2026 commencement of Ground 1A and sections 16E to 16M, made by SI 2026/421. This page is general information, not legal advice.