News from 5 June 2026
Read the current guide to tenancy rules in England.
The Ministry of Justice recorded 22,733 landlord possession claims in England and Wales in the first quarter of 2026, down 5% from a year earlier. Private landlord claims rose 4%, while social and accelerated claims fell.
Why the figures are worth watching
The official data points to lower overall landlord possession activity than a year earlier, but with private landlord claims still edging up. It also shows that possession cases remain a slow process, which is important when landlords are planning around arrears, property recovery, sale decisions or serious tenancy breaches.
The median time from claim to landlord repossession was 26.4 weeks in Q1 2026, slightly higher than the same period in 2025. Claims to order took a median eight weeks, while claims to warrant took 15.9 weeks. These are median figures, so individual cases can move faster or much more slowly depending on the court, the paperwork, tenant response, warrant availability and the facts of the case.
Regional pressure was also uneven. London courts continued to handle a large share of activity, with 7,083 landlord claims and 5,278 landlord orders in Q1 2026, accounting for 31% of each total. For private landlord claims measured by rate, Barking and Dagenham, Newham and Enfield were the highest local authority areas in the release.
