Register your rental property in the South West: dates and deadline

The South West is last for the landlord register: it opens on 15 August 2027, and your deadline is 14 November 2027. Which areas are covered, what to check first, and what to do now.

By Budgy, Editorial

Aerial view of Clifton in Bristol, with the Clifton Suspension Bridge behind

Landlords with property in the South West are last in line for the new landlord register, Register your rental property. Registration opens on 15 August 2027, and your deadline of 14 November 2027 is the final one in England.

It costs £65 per property per year, and you don't have to wait: you can register any property from 15 December 2026. Our guide to the landlord register explains what you'll need and the penalties for missing the deadline.

Key dates

  • Registration opens: 15 August 2027
  • Deadline: 14 November 2027
  • After the deadline: councils can start enforcing. Letting or marketing an unregistered property is a breach, and courts can't grant most possession orders until you register.

Which areas are covered

The South West region covers Bristol, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, Devon, Dorset, Gloucestershire, Somerset and Wiltshire, including Plymouth, Exeter, Bath, Bournemouth, Poole, Swindon and Cheltenham.

Your deadline follows the property, not you. If you live in Bristol but also let a flat in Birmingham, that flat is due by 14 March 2027, eight months before your South West deadline.

Local licensing

The register asks whether your property needs a licence. Bristol runs selective licensing in several wards, including Bishopston and Ashley Down, Cotham and Easton, and licenses smaller HMOs across the whole city. In Bath, smaller HMOs need a licence in some wards. Elsewhere in the region, check your council's website.

Your letting agent can't register for you

You have to start and finish the registration yourself. Your agent can supply property details, but the duty and the fines stay with you. If your certificates and tenancy records only live in your agent's system, ask for copies now. If you're switching agent, they're all on our handover checklist.

What to do before 15 August

  1. Put 15 August and 14 November 2027 in your diary.
  2. Check your gas safety, electrical and EPC certificates are in date.
  3. Ask your agent for copies of your tenancy details and certificates.
  4. Check with your council whether your property needs a licence.

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This guide covers England and is general information, not legal advice.

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