Property Conditions Checklist

Last updated: 13/11/2025 • First published: 04/07/2020

Introduction

As a responsible landlord, you are expected to ensure your property is safe to live in prior to the tenants occupying the property. Most landlords provide good quality homes as standard, with 84% of tenants satisfied with their accommodation according to the English Housing Survey.

To ensure that all properties are let out to the high standard that responsible landlords provide, there is an extensive amount of legislation on property conditions that landlords have to follow. As the level of risk varies depending on the type of tenancy and the type of property, not all the legislation applies to each property type.

The purpose of this checklist is to break this legislation down into a series of checklists so that you can understand your obligations in an easy to read format.

Renters' Rights Act

The Renters' Rights Bill, the most significant set of changes to the PRS in over 30 years, completed its passage through parliament on 27th October 2025 and is now the Renters' Rights Act.

The legislation doesn't apply to your tenancies yet though. The legislation will not come into force until 1 May 2026. From that date, the Act will:

Abolish Section 21;
Change the notice periods and grounds available for Section 8 notices;
Change the type of tenancy you can offer;
Ban rent in advance before the tenancy is signed;
Only allow rent increases via a Section 13 notice;
Change advertising practices; and
Significantly strengthen local authority enforcement powers.

The rest of the of the Renters' Rights Act, including the private rented database and the Decent Homes Standard, will follow at a later date.

The advice and resources on this page is currently accurate but will be outdated on 1 May 2026.

The NRLA is currently preparing a suite of replacement guides and tenancy documents to help you manage the transition smoothly.

For further information on the Renters' Rights Act and its details, please see our dedicated Renters' Rights hub.

Certificates and other required documents

Do you have a current gas safety certificate that you can provide to your tenant before they move into the property?
Do you have a valid energy performance certificate to give to anyone you are marketing the property to?
Do you have a current Electrical Installation Condition Report that confirms the property is safe to live in?

Risk assessments

Have you checked that the property is safe from legionella?
Do you have smoke alarms fitted on every floor used as a living space and a carbon monoxide alarm in every room with a solid fuel-burning appliance?
Is your property fit for human habitation?
Have you checked that your property is compliant with the fire safety legislation?
Have you checked to ensure there is nothing in disrepair in the property?

Houses in Multiple Occupation

Are all means of escape from a fire in the HMO free from obstruction and maintained in good order and repair?
If you have any fire fighting equipment is it in good working order?
Do you have adequate waste disposal facilities for the tenants?
If your property has four or more occupiers in it, do you have appropriate signage indicating the means of escape? Is this signage placed in a position that is visible to all the occupiers?

Licensing

Have you checked whether you are required to have selective, additional or mandatory HMO licence?
Have you checked your property meets the national minimum amenity standards?
If you do require/have a licence, have you tested any portable appliances in the property for safety?

Furnished dwellings

Do the furnishings and upholstered furniture supplied by you meet the fire resistance requirements in the British Fire Safety Regulations and are they clearly labelled as such?