I am not clear whether my tenant needs to give me one or two months notice. She signed an openrent contract in March but her tenancy started in June this year. The contract says one months notice but also includes a link explaining the new rules being introduced by the renters rights act saying two moths notice. So does she need to give me one or two months notice?
One month. The guidance is very clear. If you have an agreement of 1 month in your tenancy agreement, then that stands. RRA default 2 month is only if not already agreed (or if you had a notice longer than 2 months for a tenancy agreed before 1 may 2026 - such a clause would be null and void post 1 may 2026). So for example people with a fixed 12m tenancy might have had no notice specifed in any clause, even if these had turned into rolling monthly periodic, so RRA had to specify a default for such cases.
Here’s the gov guidance
"The tenancy agreement should say how much notice your tenants need to give before they can leave the property.
The maximum notice you can ask your tenant for is 2 months.
If the tenancy agreement does not say how much notice your tenant must give, they will need to give at least 2 months’ notice.
You can agree with your tenant to end the tenancy earlier or have a shorter notice period. This will need to be in writing.
Your tenant must give their notice:
- so the tenancy ends on a day when the rent is due or the day before the rent is due
- in writing, for example, by letter, email or text
You cannot tell your tenant how they should give their notice.
Your tenant will need to continue to pay rent during the notice period before the tenancy ends.
They can move out early without paying rent for the remainder of the tenancy if you agree to this.
If your tenant has given notice but changes their mind, they can only stay if you agree in writing.
If you do not agree, the tenancy will end as planned."
Good luck
Thank you, that does clarify it. I am confused then why Openrent included one month notice on a tenancy agreement with a start date after the renters rights act was being introduced? I have wrongly assumed then that all tenancies starting after the act was introduced require two months notice from the tenant.
2m was always the max and the default if not specified otherwise.
Curious tho
The standard sample whole property APT on OR website says ‘by giving not less than 2 months notice’ as per RRA
(p4 ‘ending the tenancy’)
-same for the sample APT for an individual
Source: OpenRent Assured Periodic Tenancy Agreement (APT) | Download Template
Actually 1m notice is very sensible indeed and what many tenants would already be on - the average tenancy lasts years so unless a new 12m fixed imposed by agents/LL every year (some agents did this to charge LLs and keep tenants tied in) people would have been on a rolling periodic.
Longer notice means extra costs both to tenants and LLs. Why? Because tenants wont give normally want to give notice till they have secured a new place. If notice is 2m not 1m then either they pay for old and new places for longer or LLs have a longer void waiting for the new tenant. So tenants and/or LLs have extra costs, and moves are harder to arrange and properties harder to fill. Which is bad for the market and for Openrent. The previous default for many tenants was 1m (rolling periodic) so then both tenants and LLs should be happy with it.
You as LL and tenant both had opportunity to review the OR draft before you (LL) offer to tenant, and before either (LL or tenant) sign it.
Last - if someone wants to leave in a month, why would you really want to hold them to two months? Better business sense to fill a place with people who want to be there and will take care of it. Get other tenants in sooner. Yes it’s a hassle esp if you are unlucky to have a succession of people staying a short period, but generally people will still want to stay in a home years not months, just like they did before RRA.
Good luck
Thank you for the information David but according to Openrent and a response I have had directly from them referring to the tenancy in question my tenant has to serve me two months notice despite the tenancy agreement saying one month as Openrent sent all the information to her on 1st May stating she is now required to give two months notice.
I am not convinced that Openrent are correct and the last thing you want is a protracted Tribunal case that you could lose and have to pay costs for. I would suggest you allow them to give notice in accordance with the original contract.
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Doubt Openrent have any power to unilaterally change the notice period in a tenancy agreement between you and the tenant to 1m. If they sent a notice to tenant and you and tenant didnt actually agree it, not sure that will hold any weight with a court
They may wrongly be referring to the RRA info sheet
(
)
which OR served on 1 may to all tenants. That definitely doesn’t say anything of the sort. It says
“If you want to end the tenancy
<>
You will need to give your landlord at least
2 months’ notice. You can agree a shorter
notice period with the landlord in writing,
as long as any other tenants named on the
tenancy agreement also agree.”
And a pre -existing agreement of a shorter period counts as having "agree(d) a shorter notice in writing "
@Dan40 in OR legal team may be able to give you proper advice. May be somewhat ignorant OR customer support
I would let them give the 1 month notice, as per original tenancy agreement unless you or OR have documentation showing that specific contract has been changed.
The actual legal position is set out here in recent updated govt guidance
If the tenancy started before 1 May 2026
Any valid notice your tenant gave before 1 May 2026 still applies.
If your tenant wants to end their tenancy
You cannot ask your tenant to give more than 2 months’ notice.
If there is already a notice period in the tenancy agreement, your tenant may be able to give less notice than this.
How much notice your tenant needs to give depends on if before 1 May 2026 the tenancy was:
- a rolling ‘periodic’ tenancy from the start of the tenancy
- a fixed term tenancy with an end date on or after 1 May 2026
- a fixed term tenancy that ended before 1 May 2026
If the tenancy was a rolling ‘periodic’ tenancy from the start of the tenancy
If the tenancy agreement states that it is a rolling tenancy from the start, then the notice period in the tenancy agreement still applies.
For example, if the tenancy agreement says your tenant only need to give one months’ notice, they do not need to give more.
If your tenant had a fixed term tenancy with an end date on or after 1 May 2026
The notice period in the tenancy agreement still applies.
For example, if the tenancy agreement says your tenant only need to give one months’ notice, they do not need to give more.
If your tenant had a fixed term tenancy and the end date was before 1 May 2026
If the tenancy agreement has rules in it about what would happen once the fixed term ended, the notice period in the tenancy agreement usually still applies.
For example, if the tenancy agreement states that when the fixed term ends it automatically turns into a rolling tenancy, the notice period still applies.
If the tenancy agreement does not say what happens after the fixed term ends
The notice period in the tenancy agreement no longer applies. Your tenant needs to end the tenancy using the process for assured periodic tenancies.
Other written agreements
If you made a written agreement with your tenant in a different way, for example by email or text, that may still apply.
Best