Hepi on the new PBSA rules
Since the last update to the Renters’ Rights Bill on February 3rd, interest has increased over how the Bill will impact students. Hepi says there have been significant developments since then.
Three main areas that should be addressed include; the Bill moving forward to the Committee Stage, the Unipol/ANUK National Code is now out for public consultation, and it is being looked into how PBSA will transition from the student tenancy regime into common law tenancies.
Purpose-Built Student Accommodation (PBSA)
The Bill initially stated that PBSA providers would soon become ‘specified’ under the Housing Act 1988. Issues were noted with this and as of April 1st, it was announced that Assured Shorthold Tenancies (ASTs) existing before the implementation of the Act will now transition to assured tenancies that fall under the remit of the Act.
Hepi says, “The timescale of the Bill has self-evidently slipped from the initial aim of obtaining Royal Assent by Easter 2025, and the Government is racing to ensure that it passes through all its parliamentary stages by the summer recess on July 22, 2025.”
When will the PBSA changes occur
Hepi believes it to be a ‘reasonable’ conclusion that tenure changes will occur around December 2025 or January 2026. The issue being that most students who have chosen to live in PBSA options for the 2025-26 academic year, have most likely already signed contracts. As a result, this Unipol/NUS Accommodation Cost Survey suggests that roughly 402,000 students will be affected.
Who won’t be affected?
Any students that have accommodation provided directly by the university will not be affected. This is because this accommodation type falls outside of the transitional arrangement.
What will happen to previous Assured Shorthold Tenants?
As they become assured tenants, they will be able to pay rent monthly instead of via longer payment periods (such as termly.) Hepi says, “It is not yet clear whether rent already paid in advance will have to be refunded.”
AST tenants will soon be able to give two months’ notice for leaving their contracts and Hepi says they “will be able to remain in their property because the fixed-term nature of their previous contract has been abolished.”
How clear is the new room system?
This following statement proves that the new notice 4a ground for repossession notice system for students living in HMOs is quite unclear. Baroness Taylor, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government said in the Lords on 22 April 2025:
“The core aim of the Bill is to enhance the security of tenants in the private rented sector, including students. The prior notice requirement in ground 4A is key to this. If tenants are liable to be evicted through no fault of their own simply because of their student status, they must be informed of this reduced security before entering into a tenancy.”
However, this 4a ground only applies to HMOs – houses that house multiple occupants or more than three tenants.
Click here , to read the full Hepi report on the Bill moving to the Committee Stage.
