A leading property expert has defended landlords for issuing Section 21 notices ahead of 1^st May after Housing Secretary Steve Reed labelled it “shameless behaviour”.

Kate Faulkner argues that the trend is due to understandable reasons that coincide with the Renters’ Rights Act, such as some landlords deciding to retire and others reacting to rising rates and compliance costs.

Renters’ union Acorn released figures showing that Section 21 evictions made up 22% of its cases in 2024, but 31% so far in 2026, which Reed labelled “disgraceful behaviour”. He told The Times: “There is no need to evict their tenants ahead of this ban and landlords should give people the housing security they deserve. Kicking tenants out before they receive stronger rights is the type of disgraceful behaviour from shameless landlords which our act will stop.”

Riskier

Faulkner, property analyst for the Landlord Investment Show, says it is perceived to be riskier to let to certain tenants because the Act makes it much more difficult for them to afford to rent under the Act. “Tenants that pay cash upfront won’t be able to from 1st May, so some landlords may be taking the decision to ask them to leave now as they will feel they can’t renew their tenancy,” she says.

Pension

Other landlords, particularly those who invested for a pension more than 25 years ago, are retiring, rather than learning all the new rules. Meanwhile, rates and compliance costs have risen and landlords with mortgages are taxed on turnover, so some properties just won’t stack up under the new rules, Faulkner adds.

“Where that’s the case, the landlord has no choice but to sell, while others are selling as they fear they won’t be able to improve let properties to an EPC of C. If it wasn’t for the Act they may have waited a few more years, but due to it being harder to evict, they are selling now.”

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