Register Your Rental Property: What Gloucestershire Landlords Need to Know

The government has set out how its new landlord database will work, and it now has a name: the “Register your rental property” service.

It opens in the West Midlands on 15 December 2026 and reaches the South West last. In the South West, registration opens on 15 August 2027 and the deadline is 14 November 2027. That is the window for homes in Cheltenham, Gloucester and Tewkesbury.

That is a long runway. It is also easy to lose track of, so here is what the service is, what it will ask you for and what is worth getting ready now.

What is the “Register your rental property” service?

It is the private rented sector database, rolled out as part of the second phase of Renters’ Rights Act implementation. The government’s Housing Hub guidance sets out who it covers. If you’re a landlord of an assured or regulated tenancy, you must register yourself and each of your properties through the service.

The government describes it as a tool to help councils identify and tackle poor practice. In future, tenants will also be able to use it to see whether a landlord meets key legal requirements. Offline registration routes will be available for landlords who need them.

When do you need to register your rental property in Gloucestershire?

The rollout runs region by region, and each region has a three-month window. What decides your window is where the property is, not where you live. A landlord living in London with a house in Cheltenham follows the South West dates.

Source: Housing Hub, “Get ready to register”.

You do not have to wait for your region to open. You can register from 15 December 2026, as long as each property is registered before the deadline for its area. That also helps if you let homes in more than one region.

What does it cost?

The fee is £65 a year for each property, not for each landlord. Someone letting three homes pays it three times, and pays it again when the registration renews each year. The Housing Hub page also says the fee is pro-rated during the rollout.

Which properties need registering?

For now, only properties that are let, or become let during the rollout, need to be registered. An empty flat between tenancies does not need registering yet.

That will change. The government says future legislation will require landlords to register an unoccupied property before it is marketed to let, and that adverts will need to show landlord and property identifiers. No start date has been given for either, so treat them as coming rather than here.

Landlords of supported exempt accommodation, as set out in the Supported Housing (Regulatory Oversight) Act 2023, do not need to register.

What information will you be asked for?

This is where a little preparation now saves a scramble later. For each property, the service asks for, among other things:

• the address, property type, ownership type and number of bedrooms
• whether it is let, and how many occupants and households live there
• the rent, how often it is paid and whether utilities are included
• whether it needs an HMO, additional or selective licence, and the licence number
• whether it is furnished
• gas safety information
• electrical safety information, meaning the EICR or electrical installation certificate
• the Energy Performance Certificate, and any energy efficiency exemption

You will also need a GOV.UK One Login, details about yourself or your organisation, and contact details for any freeholder, superior landlord or property manager. If your certificates are scattered across email threads and old folders, now is a good time to bring them together. Our property documents page explains what we hold for the landlords we manage.

Can your letting agent register for you?

Not entirely. If you use a letting agent, you will still need to start the registration process yourself. There will be an option for your agent or property manager to upload certain information on your behalf.

Exactly which parts an agent can supply has not been confirmed yet. Guidance for agents is due before the service launches, and we will update this article when it arrives. What an agent can already do is keep your compliance records current, so the answers are ready when your window opens.

What happens if you do not register?

Once a region’s deadline passes, councils in that region can start enforcement against landlords who should have registered. The government’s guidance says that if you do not register, you risk being fined. It does not give an amount on that page, so we have not quoted one here.

There is a second reason to register on time. Gloucester City Council notes that landlords will need to be registered on the database to use certain possession grounds. An unregistered property could leave you with fewer options if a tenancy goes wrong.

What to do now to Register Your Rental Property

If all your homes are in Gloucestershire, your window is some way off. A few things are worth doing well before it opens:

1. List every property you let and check which region each one is in.
2. Gather your gas safety record, EICR and EPC for each home, and check the dates.
3. Confirm whether any property needs an HMO, additional or selective licence.
4. Put the £65 a year per property into your budget.
5. Sign up for GOV.UK alerts on private renting so you hear when new guidance is published.

If you let through RA Flatt and would like to know where your documents stand, get in touch or call us on 01242 250982.