UK Landlord Glossary

UK landlords run into a wall of acronyms almost immediately: a mortgage broker mentions ICR, an accountant mentions Section 24, a compliance reminder says a CP12 is due, and each one assumes you already know what it means. This glossary defines the terms that come up most often, in plain English, grouped by the part of the job they relate to.

Use it as a reference rather than reading it start to finish. Each entry links to a fuller guide where the topic deserves more depth than a short definition can give.

Compliance terms

• CP12 (Gas Safety Record). The certificate confirming a Gas Safe registered engineer has checked every gas appliance, pipework and flue in the property is safe. Required annually if the property has any gas appliance, with a copy given to the tenant. See our gas safety certificate guide for what the check covers.
• EICR (Electrical Installation Condition Report). A report from a qualified electrician confirming the property's electrical installation is safe, required at least every five years for most private tenancies in England. Any dangerous or potentially dangerous issues found must be fixed within the timescale the electrician sets. Our EICR guide explains the classification codes used on the report.
• EPC (Energy Performance Certificate). Rates a property's energy efficiency from A (most efficient) to G (least efficient), valid for 10 years. A valid EPC at or above the current legal minimum is required before marketing a property to let. Our EPC requirements guide covers current minimum bands and upcoming changes.
• HMO (House in Multiple Occupation). A property let to three or more unrelated tenants who share facilities such as a kitchen or bathroom. Larger HMOs generally need a mandatory licence from the local authority, with conditions covering space standards, fire safety and management. See our HMO licence requirements guide.
• Selective licensing. A scheme some local authorities run requiring every private rental in a designated area to be licensed, regardless of whether it is an HMO. It exists separately from HMO licensing and is set at council level, so coverage varies by area.
• Right to Rent. The legal requirement to check and record a prospective tenant's immigration status before granting a tenancy, with records kept for the tenancy's duration and a period afterwards.
• Legionella risk assessment. A written assessment of the risk from legionella bacteria in a property's water system. Not a mandatory certificate for most domestic lets, but widely recommended as good practice, particularly after a period when the property has been empty.
• Deposit protection scheme. A government-approved scheme that must hold a tenancy deposit within 30 days of receipt, with prescribed information given to the tenant in the same window. There are several approved schemes to choose from, each with a broadly similar function.

Mortgage terms

• BTL (buy-to-let). A mortgage secured against a property bought to let out, assessed mainly on the rental income the property can generate rather than your personal income. Our guide to how buy-to-let mortgages work covers the mechanics in full.
• ICR (Interest Coverage Ratio). The test lenders use to check that rental income comfortably exceeds the mortgage's interest cost, calculated at a stressed rate above the actual pay rate. A typical requirement is for rent to cover the stressed interest by around 125% to 145%, depending on tax status and ownership structure. Our interest coverage ratio guide works through the calculation.
• LTV (Loan to Value). The mortgage amount as a percentage of the property's value. Standard buy-to-let lending is generally capped around 75% LTV, meaning a minimum 25% deposit.
• SPV (Special Purpose Vehicle). A limited company set up specifically to hold rental property, rather than to trade. Buying through an SPV changes how mortgage interest and profit are taxed compared with personal ownership, and typically needs a different set of mortgage products.
• Stress rate. The higher, hypothetical interest rate a lender uses to test whether rent would still cover the mortgage if rates rose, rather than testing against your actual pay rate.
• SVR (Standard Variable Rate). The rate a mortgage reverts to automatically once a fixed or tracker deal ends, usually higher than the rate you were paying during the fix. Missing a remortgage window means quietly moving onto the SVR by default.
• Portfolio landlord. A lender classification, typically applied once you own four or more mortgaged buy-to-let properties, that triggers a fuller underwriting process looking at your whole portfolio rather than just the property being financed. Our portfolio landlord rules guide explains what extra information lenders ask for.
• Consent to let. Permission from a residential mortgage lender to rent out a property that was bought on a residential mortgage, usually granted temporarily and sometimes at a slightly higher rate, rather than moving the property fully onto a buy-to-let deal.

Tax terms

• Section 24. The rule restricting individual landlords (not limited companies) from deducting mortgage interest as an expense against rental income. Instead, they receive a flat 20% tax credit on finance costs, which can push higher-rate taxpayers into paying tax on income they did not actually keep. Our Section 24 guide works through the numbers with an example.
• SDLT (Stamp Duty Land Tax). The tax paid on buying property in England and Northern Ireland. Buy-to-let and second home purchases carry an additional dwelling surcharge on top of the standard residential rates. Our buy-to-let stamp duty guide covers how the surcharge applies.
• MTD (Making Tax Digital). HMRC's programme requiring digital record-keeping and quarterly updates for Income Tax, rather than a single annual Self Assessment return, being phased in for landlords and the self-employed based on income thresholds. Our Making Tax Digital guide covers the rollout timeline.
• Capital Gains Tax (CGT). The tax due on the profit made when selling a rental property, calculated on the increase in value since purchase (or since it stopped being your main home, if relevant), after allowable costs and any available reliefs.
• Corporation tax. The tax a limited company pays on its profits, including rental profit if the property is held through an SPV, as an alternative to Income Tax on personally held property.
• Replacement of domestic items relief. A tax relief letting landlords deduct the cost of replacing (not initially buying) items such as furniture, white goods or carpets in a furnished let, capped at the cost of an equivalent standard replacement rather than an upgrade.
• Furnished Holiday Let (FHL). A property let short-term to holidaymakers rather than as a standard tenancy, historically taxed under different, sometimes more favourable rules than standard residential lettings, though the specific treatment has been subject to recent reform, so current guidance should always be checked directly.

Tenancy terms

• AST (Assured Shorthold Tenancy). The tenancy type that underpinned most private lets in England for decades, historically offering a fixed term followed by a periodic arrangement if not renewed. Since the Renters' Rights Act 2025 took effect from 1 May 2026, new and existing tenancies in England have moved to assured periodic tenancies instead, so the AST as previously understood no longer applies to new lettings. Our assured shorthold tenancy guide covers the transition in more detail.
• Assured periodic tenancy. The tenancy structure that replaced the AST in England from 1 May 2026, with no fixed end date and rolling periods (commonly monthly) rather than a fixed term. Tenants can generally end the tenancy with appropriate notice; landlords can only end it using specific legal grounds.
• Section 21. The notice previously used in England to end an assured shorthold tenancy without needing to give a reason, often called a "no fault" eviction notice. Abolished under the Renters' Rights Act 2025 from 1 May 2026, alongside the tenancy reforms above. Our Section 21 notice guide explains how transitional cases are handled.
• Section 8. The notice used to end a tenancy on specific legal grounds, such as rent arrears or breach of tenancy terms, which remains available (with an updated set of grounds) following the Renters' Rights Act reforms.
• Guarantor. A third party who agrees to cover rent or other tenancy obligations if the tenant does not pay, often required for tenants with limited income, credit history or UK residency.
• Rent Repayment Order. An order a tenant or local authority can apply for requiring a landlord to repay up to 12 months of rent, most commonly following certain licensing offences such as letting an unlicensed HMO.
• Prescribed information. The specific set of details (including the deposit scheme used and how to apply for the deposit's return) a landlord must give a tenant after protecting their deposit, within the same 30-day window as protection itself.

How Property HQ helps

Property HQ keeps the certificates, mortgage terms and tenancy documents behind most of these acronyms organised per property, with reminders before anything (a CP12, an EICR, a fixed rate) lapses. You do not need to remember every term by heart if the system tracking your portfolio already knows what each date and document means.

Disclaimer

This guide is general information for UK landlords, not legal, tax or mortgage advice. Terms and thresholds change over time, particularly following the Renters' Rights Act 2025. Check GOV.UK, HMRC or a qualified adviser for the current position on any specific term.