How to switch letting agents without the hassle

Landlords switch letting agents for all sorts of reasons: poor communication, fees that have crept up over the years, or simply finding a service that suits how you want to manage your let. Whatever the reason, the process is usually far less disruptive than it sounds. Your tenancy agreement does not change, your tenant does not need to move out, and most of the work is about paperwork and timing rather than anything legally complicated. Here is how to do it properly (or skip ahead to see how our Letting Agent Switch Scheme can do most of it for you).

1. Check your current contract before you do anything else

Every letting agent agreement (except ours!) includes a notice period, usually somewhere between one and three months, and many also have a minimum term that has to run out before you can serve notice at all. Find your terms of business and look for the cancellation clause specifically.

Pay close attention to any clause covering tenants who were 'introduced' by the agent. Some contracts allow the agent to keep charging a fee, or a percentage of rent, for a set period after you leave, if the tenant currently in the property was originally found by that agent. This is worth knowing about before you switch, not after you get an invoice you were not expecting.

2. Give written notice in the right way

Most agreements require notice in writing, sent to a specific address or email, and the notice period typically starts from the date it is received rather than the date you send it. Send it by a method that gives you proof, such as email with a read receipt or recorded post, and keep a copy. If you are unsure whether you are inside or outside the minimum term, ask the agent to confirm your exact end date in writing before you commit to a new one.

3. Sort out the deposit before the handover date

This is the step landlords most often get wrong. If your current agent registered the deposit with a tenancy deposit scheme on your behalf, you need to know exactly how it is held and who the registered lead is before you switch. There are three options once the agent relationship ends:

1. Transfer it to your new agent's scheme membership, if you are appointing a new agent who will hold and protect it.
2. Re-register it under your own name, with one of the government-approved schemes, if you are taking over management yourself.
3. Have the outgoing agent release it back to you, ready for you or your new agent to re-protect it straight away.

Whichever route applies, you must give your tenant new prescribed information confirming where the deposit is now held within 30 days of the change. Do not let the deposit sit unprotected, even briefly. If a dispute arose during a gap in protection, you could lose the right to make deductions and face a penalty of up to three times the deposit amount.

4. Confirm your new agent holds client money protection

Since 2019, any letting or managing agent in England that holds client money, including rent payments and deposits, must belong to a government-approved client money protection (CMP) scheme. This protects your money if the agent becomes insolvent or money goes missing. A legitimate agent will be able to show you their CMP certificate without being asked twice. If they cannot, treat that as a serious warning sign rather than a minor admin gap.

5. Gather your compliance paperwork

Your outgoing agent should hand over copies of everything relating to the property and the tenancy, including:

1. The current gas safety record (if applicable) and electrical safety report (EICR).
2. The energy performance certificate (EPC).
3. The signed tenancy agreement and any renewal documents.
4. Right to rent check records for the current tenant.
5. A record of the deposit registration and prescribed information already served.
6. An up-to-date statement of rent received, arrears, and any outstanding maintenance issues.

Ask for this in writing as part of your notice, with a clear handover date, so there is no awkward gap where nobody is quite sure who is responsible for the property.

6. Tell your tenant what is changing, and what is not

Your tenant's tenancy agreement stays exactly as it is. The only things that change for them are who they pay rent to, who they contact about repairs, and possibly where their deposit is held. A short, friendly note covering those three points, sent before the handover date, avoids confused calls to the old agent and rent payments going to the wrong account in the first month.

7. Set a clean handover date and stick to it

Agree a specific date with both the outgoing and incoming agent (or yourself, if you are taking over management directly) so there is no overlap or gap in who is responsible for the property. Rent due dates are a useful marker, since they create a natural point to redirect payments and start fresh records without splitting a rental period between two agents.

Common mistakes worth avoiding

1. Switching mid-tenancy without checking the deposit protection status first, leaving it briefly unprotected.
2. Not reading the continuing commission clause, and being charged for a tenant the old agent introduced years ago.
3. Letting the tenant find out about the change from a missed rent payment, rather than from you.
4. Assuming compliance certificates transfer automatically, when in practice you need to request copies and check the renewal dates yourself.

The bottom line

Switching letting agents is rarely as complicated as landlords expect. The legal and practical risks sit almost entirely around the deposit and the handover of compliance paperwork, both of which are easy to manage if you check them before you give notice rather than after.

Ready for a change?

If your current agent is costing you more than it is giving back, Moovehub offers a flat fee alternative with no percentage-of-rent commission. Our tenant find service is built for landlords who want to manage day to day themselves, and our fully managed service takes care of compliance, rent collection and maintenance if you would rather hand it over completely. And if you are switching from an existing agent, our Letting Agent Switch Scheme can manage the handover for you, you just give notice and set a date.

Tenant find service

Fully managed service