Most independent letting and estate agents in England are their own compliance department. No dedicated resource. No one checking what changed this week. In The Clear Digest fixes that. Every Monday at 7:30am, in under 10 minutes.
The problem
Regulations keep changing. By the time the news reaches you, through word of mouth or a buried trade email, you're already behind.
Scanning the trade press takes 30 minutes and most of it isn't relevant to your practice. It's written for the industry, not for you.
You need to know what changed, what it means for your agency, and what (if anything) you need to do. That's it. Nothing more.
What you get
Upcoming compliance deadlines with penalty amounts, so you're never caught out by a date you didn't know was coming.
What changed this week and exactly what you need to do about it. Plain English.
Price trends, stock levels and buyer demand. The market data that matters to independent agents.
Deadlines arriving in the next 4 weeks. Know what's coming before it lands on your desk.
One specific thing to act on now. No waffle. Straight to what needs doing.
A concise professional takeaway from each edition, written specifically to support your Propertymark CPD self-reflection log. Every edition covers Propertymark competency areas including Lettings Law & Practice and Compliance & Regulation.
Sample edition
[Legal Requirement] The 31 May deadline to serve the Renters' Rights Act Information Sheet on all existing tenants who held an assured shorthold tenancy on 1 May 2026 has now passed. If you have not yet served every required tenant, you are in breach and face a civil penalty of up to £7,000 per tenancy.
You must download the Information Sheet from GOV.UK and send it as an unaltered PDF. The most common mistake is sending a hyperlink to the document, or emailing a single copy to a joint tenancy. Neither complies. A link is not service. Joint tenancies require a separate copy addressed to each named tenant.
If you manage 100 properties and even five joint tenancies slipped through, that is potentially ten individual breaches at up to £7,000 each. Local authorities are actively monitoring compliance. For you, this means auditing your entire managed portfolio today, confirming the PDF was sent to each named tenant individually, and logging the date and method of service.
[Legal Requirement] Section 21 was abolished on 1 May 2026. If you issue a Section 21 notice now, you face a civil penalty of up to £7,000 for a first breach. It escalates to a civil penalty of up to £40,000 or criminal prosecution only where the breach continues for more than 28 days after a penalty has been imposed.
The mistake most agents make is assuming old template packs or software workflows have been updated automatically. They have not. If a landlord instructs you to serve a Section 21, your obligation is to refuse and explain the legal position. For you, this means checking every notice template in your system this week and removing all Section 21 templates from active use.
With all tenancies now periodic under the Renters' Rights Act, the traditional fixed-term renewal cycle has ended. This changes how you demonstrate value to landlords because the old rhythm of renewal fees and fixed-term negotiations no longer exists. Agents who are ahead of this are already repositioning their service around proactive tenancy management and faster response to Section 8 grounds. Agents who have not adapted their landlord reporting or fee structures risk losing instructions to competitors who can clearly explain how they protect landlord interests in a periodic-only world.
[Legal Requirement] The government expects to begin the regional rollout of the Private Rented Sector Database and the new Landlord Ombudsman from late 2026. The PRS Database will require landlords to register their properties before they can be legally marketed or let. Starting your landlord communications now means you avoid a scramble later in the year when registration opens.
[Legal Requirement] Run your full portfolio report and confirm, tenancy by tenancy, that the Renters' Rights Act Information Sheet was served as an unaltered PDF to every named tenant who held an AST on 1 May 2026. If you find gaps, serve the document today and log it. Every day you remain in breach increases the likelihood of a local authority penalty of up to £7,000 per tenancy. Enforcement is active and the deadline has already passed.
After reading this edition, you will understand the current penalty exposure for agents who have not served the Renters' Rights Act Information Sheet, the escalation pathway for issuing Section 21 notices after abolition, and the preparation steps to take now ahead of the PRS Database and Landlord Ombudsman rollout expected later this year. This edition supports Propertymark CPD competency areas: Lettings Law & Practice, Compliance & Regulation.
This is the actual edition sent on Monday 1 June 2026. A new edition lands every Monday morning at 7:30am.
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What people are saying
In The Clear Digest translates regulatory and compliance movement into practical operational implications rather than just legal updates in isolation. That's where a lot of the real value sits for agencies right now.
Reliable information, received regularly. Exactly what I needed. Would 100% recommend.
FAQ
In The Clear Digest is a weekly email briefing for letting and estate agents in England. Every Monday morning we send you a concise, plain-English summary of the compliance and regulatory news that matters to independent agents, with clear guidance on what (if anything) you need to do.
Trade press and association emails cover a wide range of industry topics and are often lengthy. In The Clear Digest is laser-focused on compliance and regulatory updates, written specifically for independent agents, and structured to get you in and out in under 10 minutes, with clear action points, not just summaries.
Yes. There are no contracts or commitments. Monthly subscribers can cancel at any time and won't be charged for the next period. Annual subscribers can cancel and will retain access for the remainder of their billing year.
Both. The digest covers compliance relevant to letting agents (tenancy law, deposit rules, HMO licensing, EPC requirements) and estate agents (material information obligations, anti-money laundering, Consumer Duty). Most independent agencies handle both, so we cover both.
In The Clear Digest is an independent publication. Each edition is researched using primary sources including HMRC, MHCLG, the FCA, NTSELAT, and others, and compiled specifically for independent agents in England. It is not affiliated with any trade body or supplier.