Agreed lettings beat portal asking rents.
Nine agreed lettings in the same block confirmed a landlord’s full figure. A portal price guide on its own lost another landlord the whole increase.
LON/00BB/MRA/2026/0009 · BIR/00CS/MRA/2026/0013Tribunal-backed rent reviews
The only rent review built on tribunal evidence.
See how the First-tier Tribunal is ruling near your property — before you send a Section 13 notice.
Free for a month. No card. Tenants always free.
Rent review · 5 Tottington RoadNorthgate Residential
High riskWaiting for the landlordDates valid
Current rent£860.00
Proposed£963.20
Defensible range£864.50–£955.50
Takes effect1 Dec 2026
£7.70 above the range. If the tenant refers it, the tribunal cannot set more than you asked — only the same or less. Change the figure, or keep it and record why.
Evidence behind the range
Your lettings, 3-bed houses, BL84 lets · £905–£950
ONS private rent average, Bury£912
Tribunal: MAN/00BM/MNR/2026/0078cut to £910
846tribunal rent decisions read in full, March to October 2026
60%of rents challenged under the new rules were cut below the notice
18%ended with no increase at all — four set below the current rent
4 in 5increases of more than 15% were cut when challenged
Abide.Rent analysis of First-tier Tribunal decisions published on gov.uk. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
What the tribunal is actually doing
Six things we learned reading every post-reform decision.
From the first 79 cases decided under the Renters’ Rights Act rules, June to September 2026.
Your own renewals don’t prove the market.
Tribunals strip out the sitting-tenant effect: rents tenants accepted to keep their home carry little weight.
MAN/00BR/MRA/2026/0042 · MAN/00BP/MRA/2026/0036Close and like-for-like, or it’s ignored.
Comparables a mile or two away are set aside. The best evidence is the same building, same size — ideally the flat next door.
LON/00AJ/MRA/2026/0068 · CAM/00MC/MRA/2026/0008Condition is priced line by line.
Worn flooring, single glazing, a roof leak, tired common parts — each comes off the rent. Bad enough disrepair freezes the rent until it’s fixed.
LON/00AF/MRA/2026/0055 · HAV/21UD/MRA/2026/0019A timing error kills the notice.
Wrong start date, too little notice from the day it was received, unsigned by joint landlords: the increase never happens.
MAN/00BS/MRA/2026/0001 · MAN/00CG/MRA/2026/0063Under-ask and you can’t get it back.
In several cases the tribunal found the market rent above the notice — and still had to stop at the landlord’s figure.
MAN/00BN/MRA/2026/0039 · LON/00BJ/MRA/2026/0014The tribunal can only cut. Price it right first time.
No upside
The tribunal cannot set a rent above what you proposed.
No backdating
If the decision comes after the date on your notice, the new rent starts from the first rent day on or after the decision.
It can go below today’s rent
The tribunal decides the open-market rent. If similar homes let for less, it can set less than the tenant pays now.
A cut compounds
Next year’s review starts from the lower figure.
The wait costs you
Every week before the decision is at the old rent, even if you win.
How it works.
- Your evidenceThree achieved lettings of similar homes — from your own book, an agent’s letter or a let-agreed listing — graded like-for-like and adjusted, set a defensible range.
- The tribunal’s viewPublished market-rent decisions near the property: what was asked, what was set, and how long it took.
- Risk on your figureHigh, medium or low — with the cost of a typical cut, the wait, and the warning that the tribunal can go below today’s rent, before the landlord signs off.
- A pack ready to fileAchieved lettings, the condition record, decisions and proof of service in one pack, kept on legal hold if the tenant applies.
- Every deadline afterIf the tenant applies, the referral tracker keeps the directions, the statement deadline, a draft statement and what you sent.
Tribunal decisions
Every published decision, by postcode district.
See what was asked, what was set and how long it took — near the property you’re reviewing.
- Filter by district and property type
- Cut rate and median cut by area
- Linked to the published decision
Tribunal decisions near BL8Northgate Residential
23Decisions within 10 miles
16Set below the asking rent
6.4%Median cut
91Median days to decide
BL8 · 3-bed terrace£950 → £910Cut 4.2%84 days
BL9 · 3-bed house£1,050 → £1,050Confirmed91 days
BL1 · 2-bed flat£850 → £750Cut 11.8%102 days
M28 · 3-bed semi£1,200 → £1,200Confirmed77 days
M19 · 2-bed flat£1,000 → £950Cut 5.0%82 days
Comparable lettings
A figure you can stand behind.
Achieved lettings of similar homes set the range. An area average is shown as context, never as evidence. The tribunal data shows the risk.
- Graded strong, usable or weak
- Adjustments with a reason and an amount
- Condition and the s.14(2) disregards recorded
Rent review · 5 Tottington RoadNorthgate Residential
High riskWaiting for the landlordDates valid
Current rent£860.00
Proposed£963.20
Defensible range£864.50–£955.50
Takes effect1 Dec 2026
£7.70 above the range. If the tenant refers it, the tribunal cannot set more than you asked — only the same or less. Change the figure, or keep it and record why.
If the tenant applies
Tribunal-ready on day one.
Proof of service, comparables and decisions — already on the property. Then every deadline until the decision.
- Evidence pack in one export
- Directions and statement deadline on Today
- Ready for the Valuation Office switch
Section 13 notice · 18 Openshaw DriveNorthgate Residential
- Landlord approved14 Sep, 16:57
- Form 4A signed15 Sep, 09:12
- Served by email and first-class post15 Sep, 09:14
- Delivered15 Sep, 09:14
- Opened by tenant15 Sep, 19:40
- Tenant confirmed receipt16 Sep, 08:03
- Next review allowed from1 Dec 2027
Service record completeEach party keeps their own copy, even if the agency changes.
Others print the notice. We give you the evidence.
| Rent increase | Typical CRM or landlord app | Abide.Rent |
|---|---|---|
| Fill in the Section 13 notice | Yes | Yes |
| Earliest valid date | Sometimes | Yes |
| Tribunal decisions near the property | — | Yes |
| Risk score on the proposed rent | — | Yes |
| Comparable lettings, graded and adjusted | — | Yes |
| Warning that the tribunal can go below today’s rent | — | Yes |
| Proof of service: delivered, opened, confirmed | Partly | Yes |
| Tribunal evidence pack | — | Yes |
| Tribunal referral tracker: directions, deadlines, statement | — | Yes |
Decisions are published First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) determinations. Screens show an example account. Not legal advice.
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