Ground 1A Notice, Selling a Tenanted Property

From 1 May 2026 Section 21 of the Housing Act 1988 was abolished in England. If you want to sell a tenanted property with vacant possession, the only lawful route is Section 8, and the relevant ground is the new Ground 1A. This guide explains how Ground 1A works, the deadlines, what evidence you need, and the criminal-offence risk if you breach the re-let ban.

What Ground 1A is and when it applies

• Ground 1A is a new mandatory possession ground introduced by the Renters' Rights Act 2025
• Available where the landlord intends to sell the dwelling (with vacant possession)
• The intention must be genuine at the date the notice is served, not contingent on the tenant first leaving
• Cannot be used if the property was purchased with a sitting tenant already in occupation
• Cannot be used in the first 12 months of the tenancy, the notice cannot expire before the tenancy reaches its 12-month anniversary

Notice period and the 12-month timing rule

• Notice period: 4 months, served on Form 3A
• The notice cannot expire earlier than 12 months after the tenancy started; for converted ASTs the relevant start date is the original AST start, not the 1 May 2026 conversion date
• Earliest valid service is therefore at the start of month 8 of the tenancy, so the 4-month notice period lands at or after month 12
• Serving earlier than month 8 is not unlawful, but the notice will be premature, and a premature notice is defective

Form 3A, what changed

Form 3A is the new statutory possession-notice form introduced for the Renters' Rights Act regime. It replaces the old Form 3 used for Section 8 notices pre-1 May 2026. Form 3A captures every mandatory and discretionary ground (including 1A, 1B, 4A, 5C and so on) on a single prescribed-format form. Serving a Section 8 notice on the old Form 3 on or after 1 May 2026 will render the notice defective.

Evidence of genuine intention to sell

• Estate agent instruction letter or marketing valuation report dated before notice service
• Solicitor's correspondence opening a sale file
• Online listing screenshots (Rightmove, Zoopla, OnTheMarket) once advertised
• Mortgage redemption forecast from your lender (where the sale is to discharge the mortgage)
• Correspondence with a tax adviser about CGT or principal-residence reliefs
• Any document that shows the decision to sell was a real, pre-existing plan rather than a strategy invented to recover possession

What happens after you serve the notice

1. Wait the full 4-month notice period before applying to court (premature applications are dismissed).
2. If the tenant does not vacate at the end of the notice, apply to court for a possession order on Form N5B (or N5 for an oral hearing).
3. The court will grant an outright possession order if Ground 1A is properly proven, typically 14 days to vacate.
4. Begin marketing the property for sale promptly. Document the marketing activity carefully.
5. Do not re-let the property within 12 months of the possession date. If the sale falls through, leave it empty or sell to a new buyer.

Penalty for breach of the re-let ban

• Re-letting within 12 months of the Ground 1A possession date is a criminal offence under the Renters' Rights Act 2025
• The original tenant can apply to the First-tier Tribunal for a Rent Repayment Order of up to 24 months' rent
• Local authorities can also apply
• Conviction can disqualify you from being a landlord under banning-order provisions
• Selling within 12 months is not a breach (selling is not re-letting), but document the chain of events carefully

Get the Ground 1A notice template

Our Ground 1A Landlord-Sale Notice (£19) is a single-ground Form 3A pre-completed with the Ground 1A statutory text, the 4-month expiry calculator, and an evidence checklist. Editable DOCX plus typeset PDF, delivered instantly.