Landlord Ombudsman Fee: How Much Will Membership Cost Per Property?

The Fee Has Not Been Announced

As of October 2026, the exact annual membership fee for the PRS Landlord Ombudsman has not been set. No scheme administrator has been designated, no operational portal exists, and no pricing has been published. The fee will be determined during the procurement process and confirmed before mandatory membership begins (expected 2028).

Anyone quoting a specific PRS Landlord Ombudsman membership fee right now is either speculating or confusing it with a different charge.

What the Law Requires

SI 2026/1033 (Regulation 7) imposes strict constraints on how fees can be calculated. The scheme must operate on a non-profit, cost-reflective basis. Fees must cover the reasonable operational costs of running the scheme — adjudicator salaries, IT infrastructure, complaint investigation, and early dispute mediation — and nothing more.

Under Regulation 7(5), fees must be "fair and proportionate." The scheme operator cannot set fees to generate profit, and any increase requires explicit formal approval from the Secretary of State. This prevents the scheme from becoming a revenue-generating operation at landlords' expense.

The Closest Benchmark

The Housing Ombudsman Service — the existing voluntary scheme for private landlords (mandatory only for social housing) — charges £9.64 per unit per year. This covers access to their dispute resolution service, Complaint Handling Code, and member support.

The mandatory PRS Landlord Ombudsman's fee will be set independently under different regulations, but the cost-recovery principle is the same. Government policy guidance indicates an expected "small annual per-property charge." For a single-property landlord, the fee is likely to be modest. For portfolio landlords, it scales per unit.

Separate from the PRS Database Fee

The PRS Database charges £65 per property per year — a confirmed figure, with the database launching regionally from 15 December 2026. These are two distinct registration fees for two distinct systems:

You will need both. The database fee and the ombudsman fee are separate annual charges.

You Cannot Pass the Cost to Tenants

Under the Tenant Fees Act 2019 and the rent-setting provisions of the Renters' Rights Act 2025, charging tenants any fee associated with ombudsman membership, database registration, or dispute resolution constitutes a prohibited payment. Local housing authorities can impose civil penalties of up to £5,000 for an initial breach, rising to £30,000 or criminal prosecution for repeat offences.

This applies to both the ombudsman fee and the database fee. Neither can be added to the rent, deducted from the deposit, or charged as a separate administration fee.

How Renewal Will Work

Membership operates on an annual renewal cycle. Based on the regulatory framework:

• Landlords must execute renewal filings within a 30-day window prior to expiry
• Failure to pay renewal fees or update annual declarations transitions the entry from "active" to "inactive"
• Letting property while holding an inactive status counts as operating without membership — exposing you to the same penalties as never joining at all (up to £7,000 for a first breach, £40,000 for a repeat)

You're also required to notify the scheme of material changes within 28 days: address changes, property sales, acquisitions, corporate restructuring, or changes in managing agent appointments.

What This Means for Budgeting

Until the fee is announced, the Housing Ombudsman's £9.64 annual per-unit charge is a comparison only, not a forecast for the PRS Landlord Ombudsman. Add the confirmed £65 database fee, and budget £65 per property per year plus the yet-to-be-announced Ombudsman fee — before any local licensing fees that may apply in your area.

For a 10-property portfolio, the confirmed PRS Database charge alone is £650 per year, plus the Ombudsman fee once announced.

The PRS Landlord Ombudsman guide tracks fee announcements as they emerge and maps the full cost landscape — ombudsman, database, and local licensing — so you can budget accurately before mandatory deadlines hit.

See more England guides →