The PRS Database (officially the ‘Register your rental property’ service) now has a confirmed rollout date. On 9 September 2026, the government set out exactly when landlords across England will need to register, starting in the West Midlands this December. Here’s what it means for you.

Here’s what you need to know.

PRS Database rollout: key dates by region

→ It starts on 15 December 2026, region by region, beginning in the West Midlands. 

→ Each region gets a three-month window to register once its start date hits. West Midlands landlords need to be done by 14 March 2027. If your property’s in London, you’ve got until 14 October 2027. 

→ The deadline follows the property, not the landlord. Live in London but let a flat in Birmingham? You’re working to the West Midlands date. 

→ It’ll cost £65 per property, every year. Not a one-off – annually (not cheap!)

→ As a part of the registration process, you’ll need to upload your gas safety record, electrical certificate (EICR or EIC) and EPC 

→ Once your region’s deadline passes, you can’t legally market or let a property without an active Landlord Registration Number and Property Registration Number. If you miss it, councils can fine you up to £7,000 – rising to £40,000 if the information you’ve given is false or misleading, or if you carry on breaching the rules.

My thoughts

The Government is insisting that landlords register their property personally, which is frustrating as it would be great if a landlord could get their letting agent to do this all for them (which makes sense if the letting agent oversees the rest of the property compliance anyway).

I see the purpose of ensuring compliance, but it does feel like yet another thing for the landlord to do, along with another associated cost. Ultimately I feel this is likely to harm tenants as more landlords decide ‘too much admin’ and withdraw from the market (sell) – and the scarcity drives up rental prices further.

In reality – will councils have the capacity to make use of this information and enforce the rules? Is it really going to result in change or improvement in standards for tenants? Won’t rule breakers continue to break the rules, while the good landlords have yet another task to add to their compliance load?

I also worry about this data being public – will this be abused by the wrong parties or even AI? Perhaps the government could consider balancing the tenant interest with data protection laws by only (somehow) making this data accessible to tenants? 

Further Information

Full detail is on GOV.UK if you want to go straight to the source: “Get ready: ‘Register your rental property’ service.”

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