Good morning everyone. My husband and I have been going back and forth on this for months now but I think we are finally leaning towards putting our buy to let property in Kent on the market this year. For those who have not seen my previous threads, we are both recently retired, the property is a two bedroom terraced house in a small town outside Canterbury, and we have had the same tenant for just over four years on a fixed term AST that rolls periodic every August.
The question we keep coming back to is whether to sell with the tenant in place or seek vacant possession first. Our understanding is that we can still serve a Section 21 notice provided we do so before the Renters’ Rights Act takes full effect on 1 May 2026, and that gives the tenant two months’ notice, so in theory if we served notice now we could have vacant possession by mid to late April. However, our tenant has been perfectly reliable, always pays on time, and I feel very uncomfortable about displacing someone purely for our convenience.
On the other hand, I have read that selling with a tenant in situ typically reduces the sale price by 10 to 20 per cent because the buyer pool is limited to other investors, and given that the whole reason we are selling is to release capital, that is a significant consideration.
I would be grateful for any practical experience from those who have sold in either situation. Specifically, how much of a discount did you see for tenant in situ sales, and did agents have a strong view on which route to take? Also, is it realistic to serve a Section 21 now and still complete a sale before May, or are we kidding ourselves on the timeline?
Many thanks in advance for any thoughts.
You are conflating two separate decisions here and it is worth pulling them apart. The first is whether to sell at all, which it sounds like you have more or less decided. The second is whether to serve a Section 21 before May, which is a timing question that has nothing to do with the sale itself.
Serving notice now gives you vacant possession by mid April at the earliest. You are not going to list, accept an offer, instruct solicitors, complete searches and exchange in six weeks. It is not happening. So the Section 21 question is really about whether you want vacant possession for when you do eventually sell, which could be summer or later.
The discount for tenant in situ varies hugely. I sold one with a tenant in 2019 and took about 12% less than vacant. But the tenant was on a periodic and the buyer was a cash investor so it went through in five weeks, no chain. If your tenant is reliable and on a periodic tenancy that is actually attractive to some investors. The question is whether you want full market value or a quick clean exit.
I sold my BTL flat last year so this is fresh territory for me. I went vacant possession and I do not regret it for a second. The tenant was fine, no issues, but the reality is that the moment you list a property with a tenant in situ you are marketing it as an investment to a much smaller pool of buyers who all think they deserve a hefty discount for the inconvenience of inheriting someone else’s tenancy. You end up negotiating with people whose entire business model is buying cheap, and they know you are under time pressure because of the regulatory changes. It is not a good position to be in. Penny is right that you will not complete before May, so forget that as a motivator, but the practical upside of vacant possession is that you can dress the place, do viewings on your terms, and attract owner occupiers who will pay full whack. As for the moral dimension, your tenant is an adult on a rolling contract who presumably knows that tenancies end, and you are not a housing charity. I know that sounds blunt but it is the reality of being a landlord who has decided to sell.
@Frankie91, thank you for sharing your experience. It is very reassuring to hear from someone who has been through it recently. I think you are right that the pool of buyers is simply larger with vacant possession, and that matches what our local agent has said.
We have spoken to the tenant over the weekend and she was very understanding. She has been with us for four years and we have always had a good relationship, so thankfully there is no animosity. She has said she would be willing to leave by early April if we can give her formal notice promptly, which lines up roughly with the Section 21 window closing on 1 May. Our solicitor has confirmed we can still serve a valid Section 21 provided we do it before the Act comes into force, but he did stress that the notice period is two months and we need to have all the prescribed information in order. I am fairly confident we do, but he is checking.
The part I am less sure about is the practical timeline. If we serve notice now and she leaves in mid April, we then need to get the property cleaned, perhaps do a few cosmetic bits, get it photographed, and only then does it go on the market. By that point we are well into May and competing with what I suspect will be a glut of other ex BTL properties from landlords who have had the same idea. @PracticalPenny62, you made the point about separating the two decisions and I have taken that on board. We are now firmly in the “how” rather than the “whether” stage.
One thing I would be grateful for any views on. Is it worth getting an agent round for a valuation now, before the tenant has left, just so we have a realistic figure in mind? Or do agents prefer to see the property empty before committing to a number? Many thanks.
You’re right to worry about that. There are already three ex-rentals on my street alone and none have sold.
@Sparrow_Kent2, get the agent round now. Most decent agents will value a property with a tenant in situ without any issue, they just need to see the rooms and the general condition. My neighbour did exactly this last autumn when she was deciding whether to sell her rental, and the agents were perfectly happy to come in and give her a figure. The tenant did not love it but it was one visit, not a parade of viewers.
On the timing concern, I would not overthink the glut question. Yes there are more ex-BTL properties coming to market, the data supports that. But a well-presented family property in Kent is not the same as a tired one-bed flat in a tower block. Pricing it correctly from day one matters more than whether you list in May or June. The properties sitting around unsold in my area are almost all overpriced by 10-15%, and the agents knew it when they listed them. Price it right and it will move.
PS: Do the cosmetic bits before the photos, obviously, but do not go mad. A deep clean, fresh white paint in any rooms that need it, and tidy the garden. That is it.
@Sparrow_Kent2, one point on timing that has not come up in this thread. If you complete before 5 April 2026 you will need to file the CGT return and pay the tax within 60 days of completion, not at the end of the tax year. The 60-day window applies to all UK residential property disposals by individuals. If completion slips into the new tax year, the same 60-day rule applies but you may benefit from a fresh annual exempt amount. Worth factoring in when choosing a target completion date. Professional advice on the numbers is essential here.
@CGT_Watcher, good point on the 60-day window but I think for @Sparrow_Kent2 the more immediate pressure is the Renters’ Rights Act coming into force on 1 May. If the tenant is still in situ at that point the whole possession landscape changes, and selling with a periodic tenancy under the new regime is a different proposition entirely from selling with a standard AST. The CGT timing is a secondary concern in my view. Getting the property vacant or at least under offer before May is the real deadline here. The tax year end is a nice to have, not the driver.
Good morning everyone and thank you for keeping this thread going, it has been very useful indeed.
A quick update from our end. We had two agents round to value the property on Wednesday. Both came in at broadly the same figure, around £285,000 for vacant possession and approximately £255,000 to £260,000 with tenant in situ. The gap is larger than I had hoped but I suppose it confirms what several of you have said about the discount buyers expect.
Our tenant has been perfectly pleasant about the whole thing so far. We wrote to her last weekend explaining our plans and she replied promptly saying she understood but would appreciate as much notice as possible. She has not said anything about whether she would be willing to allow viewings, which is really the next hurdle. The agents both said they would want to do viewings within the next two to three weeks if we are serious about completing before the Renters’ Rights Act takes effect on 1 May.
@PracticalPenny62, you raised a good point about the May deadline being the more pressing concern. If for whatever reason the tenant became uncooperative with viewings, does anyone know where we would stand? I have read that under the current rules we could serve a Section 21 with two months notice, but that takes us well past 1 May. Is a Section 8 ground available in this situation, or is that only for rent arrears and antisocial behaviour? I realise I probably need to speak to a solicitor about this but I would appreciate any practical insight in the meantime.
Many thanks as always.
Good morning everyone. I wanted to post a quick update as a few of you have been kind enough to follow our situation.
We have decided to go with the second agent, who came back with a suggested listing price of £265,000. This is about £10,000 below what the first agent suggested but my husband and I both felt the second agent was more realistic about the current market and about the type of buyer we are likely to attract. The first agent was very keen on tenant in situ as a selling point for investor buyers but the second was quite firm that vacant possession would open us up to a much wider pool, particularly owner occupiers and first time buyers. He also pointed out that investor demand has softened noticeably in the last six months, which tallies with what @CGT_Watcher has been posting about transaction volumes.
The tenant’s fixed term AST runs until the end of April so the timing is very tight. We have given notice that we will not be renewing and she has been perfectly reasonable about it, thankfully. The plan is to list as soon as the property is vacant, which realistically means the first or second week of May. I am aware that this means we will be listing after the Renters’ Rights Act comes into force on 1 May, but the agent did not seem concerned about that for a sale with vacant possession.
My main worry now is the CGT side. @PracticalPenny62, you were right that the May deadline was the more pressing concern, but now that we have a plan for that I am turning my attention back to the tax position. If we list in May and complete in, say, July or August, that puts us well into the 2026/27 tax year. Does anyone know whether the annual exempt amount is changing again in April? I have lost track of which allowances are frozen and which have been cut.
Many thanks as always for the help on this thread.
@Sparrow_Kent2, the annual exempt amount has been frozen at £3,000 per person since April 2024 and there is nothing in the current Budget to suggest it is moving. So for you and your husband jointly that is £6,000 between you. Not much shelter.
I would query the listing in May plan though. If you are only going on the market after the tenant leaves at the end of April, you are looking at a realistic completion date of August at the earliest, probably later with the summer slowdown. That is a long time carrying a vacant property with no rental income.
Good afternoon everyone and thank you again for all the help on this thread. I wanted to post another update as things are now moving quite quickly.
The agent we chose (the second one, as I mentioned earlier in the week) has come back with a formal marketing plan and a proposed listing price of £265,000. Their original valuation was £260,000 to £270,000, so this sits right in the middle. My husband and I had been thinking about listing at £275,000 to leave some room for negotiation, but I noticed the Nationwide data this week showing prices essentially flat, and the Rightmove figures from last week saying the same thing. I do not want to price ourselves out of the market, especially since the agent said they are seeing more properties come on in our area at the moment, possibly landlords selling ahead of the Renters’ Rights Act changes in May.
The agent has recommended going on the market in the second week of March, which would give us about three weeks before the end of the tax year. I know from @CGT_Watcher’s earlier advice that completing before 5 April is almost certainly not realistic at this stage, but the agent thinks an early listing might catch some motivated buyers before Easter.
My question is really this. Given that the market seems to be flat at best, would you list at the agent’s recommended £265,000 or push to £270,000 or £275,000 and be prepared to reduce? I am conscious that overpricing at the start can put buyers off, but equally I do not want to leave money on the table. Any thoughts would be very welcome.
Thank you all as always.
@Sparrow_Kent2, I would go with £265,000. In a flat market, the first few days of a listing get the most eyeballs, and if you are sitting £10k above comparables you lose that initial surge of interest for very little upside.
Our neighbour three doors down listed their semi at £15k above the agent’s advice last spring. Had to reduce twice, eventually sold for £5k below where the agent originally suggested. By that point it had been on Rightmove for twelve weeks and the price history was visible to everyone, which just invites lowball offers. The agent knows the local market better than we do from looking at indices; if they are saying £265k I would trust them on that and hold firm once you get offers rather than starting high and chasing downwards.