More agents turning to guarantor agreements

Two in every five new tenancies now require a guarantor, says a new report from Generation Rent.

And with the Renters’ Rights Act coming into force in just a few months, guarantor arrangements could become an even more important way to reduce risk for landlords and agents in England.

The tenant activist group polled 711 private renters and found that 40% had been asked to provide a guarantor for a new tenancy in 2025, compared to 33% of those who started their tenancy between 1 and 3 years ago.

Under a guarantor agreement, a nominated person is obliged to pay rent if the tenant stops. Depending on the terms of the agreement, they may also have to pay for damage to the property, and in shared tenancies they can be on the hook for the full rent.

That has sometimes been controversial. Last year, a group of housing sector charities called on the government to limit guarantors’ liability to six months of rent and prevent landlords from requiring one when they also have rent guarantee insurance. They raised concerns that guarantor requirements discriminate against tenants who don’t have well-off relatives who can stand as guarantors.

But landlords say the agreements help riskier tenants to secure homes to rent.

Landlords’ last line of defence?

What explains the growing use of guarantor agreements? They’re one of the last tools agents have to protect their landlords from arrears.

According to the Generation Rent poll, 23% of new tenants were asked for multiple months of rent up front in 2025. From 1 May, though, that won’t be an option in England: the Renters’ Rights Act bans landlords from taking more than one month of rent up front.

It also removes the option of a Section 21 eviction, requiring landlords to evict tenants through the courts using the Section 8 process. Court backlogs mean that this can take many months, leaving landlords with a hefty arrears bill if the tenant isn’t paying rent.

But the government left guarantor arrangements untouched, despite proposed amendments that would have limited how and when they can be used. With other options off the table, we could well see more use of them in 2026.