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17 October 2025 / James Naylor
Issue: 8135 / Categories: Features , Landlord&tenant , Property
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Upward-only rent reviews: A real battle?

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The prohibition of upward-only rent reviews represents a significant shift in the balance of power between landlords & tenants: but are they at war to begin with? James Naylor reports
  • The English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill proposes banning upward-only rent reviews in new commercial leases, aiming to rebalance power between landlords and tenants and support high street revitalisation.

Is the relationship between landlord and tenant inevitably adversarial, with each party seeking to maximise their own advantage at the expense of the other? Or is this a reductive view of what is, in reality, a more nuanced commercial partnership—one in which the interests of both parties may, at times, be aligned?

These questions are particularly pertinent in the context of government intervention: should the state restrict the freedom of landlords and tenants to agree rent review mechanisms? And, more fundamentally, can regulating rent review alone address the persistent issue of vacant high streets and the potential associated rise in anti-social behaviour?

Legislative & policy context

Answers may

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