Landlords in England and Wales are waiting significantly longer to regain possession of their properties.
The average timeline has risen 9% over the past year to almost 25 weeks.
This comes alongside a continued rise in repossession volumes and ahead of major legislative change in the private rented sector.
Legal For Landlords says that while possession volumes have risen modestly, the time taken to complete the process has increased sharply.
Over the past four quarters, the average number of quarterly possessions stood at 7,099, compared to 6,799 during the previous four quarters.
The average time from to progress from submitting a possession claim to completing a repossession rose by 9.1%, from 24.4 weeks to 26.6 weeks.
This increase includes a 0.4% extension to the amount of time taken to progress from claim to the issuing of an order, and a 2.9% increase in the time between claim and a warrant being issued.
Annual repossessions nearing pre-pandemic levels
Further analysis of longer-term trends and it becomes clear that the total number of annual repossessions is climbing back to pre-pandemic levels.
In 2019, there were 30,319 landlord repossessions across England & Wales.
This figure fell dramatically to 7,327 in 2020 as court activity was curtailed during the pandemic.
Since then, repossessions have increased year on year, reaching 27,582 in 2024 – the latest full year of data available – and some 21,441 taking place between Q1 and Q3 of 2025 alone (latest available data).
While still slightly below pre-pandemic levels, the upward trend highlights growing pressure within the sector.
Section 21 and the Renters’ Rights Act
The latest data comes as the government prepares to abolish Section 21 evictions under the Renters Rights Act.
Legal For Landlords expects this shift to increase both the complexity of possession claims and the pressure on an already stretched court system.
Landlord Petition Receives 10,000 signatures
A petition calling for expedited court processes for landlord evictions has gathered more than 10,000 signatures in just over two weeks, triggering a mandatory government response.
The petition, posted on the Parliament website, was started by Craig Littlejohn, a landlord in Scotland who is currently owed more than £7,000 in unpaid rent and faces a 12-month wait for his eviction application to be processed by courts in Glasgow.
Littlejohn, who describes himself as an ‘accidental landlord’, rents out a single four-bedroom property in Fife after relocating to Oxfordshire for his work as an RAF serviceman several years ago.
The petition states: “We urgently need an expedited court process for mandatory grounds (ASB/arrears), a vetting database for repeat offenders, and a higher deposit cap to help sustain the rental market.”
Speaking about his motivation for the petition, Littlejohn said: “There are a lot of good landlords out there, and they are giving us no protection at all.” He added that “no-one talks about ‘rogue tenants'” and expressed concern that the Renters’ Rights Act, coming into force in May, is “giving tenants more and more rights”.
Under Parliament petition rules, any petition reaching 10,000 signatures requires a government response. If the petition reaches 100,000 signatures, it will trigger a parliamentary debate on the issue.
The petition highlights ongoing concerns within the buy-to-let sector regarding court processing times for eviction cases and the balance of protections between landlords and tenants in the rental market.
Government revises eviction guidance before Renters Rights Act
The government has issued revised guidance on giving notice to private tenants before May 1.
This is the date when much of the Renters Rights Act (RRA) comes into effect.
The three latest revisions to the guidance all concern deposits.
The government says that landlords, or their agents, must ensure they issue possession notices correctly before May 1. If notice is served on or after that date, the new possession process takes effect.
You can see the latest guidance, including the deposit updates, here