Ground 6: redevelopment or substantial works

Section 8 Ground 6 lets you recover a let home in England when you intend to demolish or reconstruct it, or carry out substantial works, and the work can't reasonably be done with the tenant living there. It is a mandatory ground with a 4-month notice period. The tenancy must also have begun at least 6 months before the date in your notice.

What Ground 6 means in plain English

As a private landlord, you must intend to:

• demolish or reconstruct the whole or a substantial part of the property; or
• carry out substantial works on it.

You must also show the work can't reasonably be done with the tenant in occupation, because one of these applies:

1. the tenant won't agree to vary the tenancy to give you the access the work needs;
2. the work is such that no variation of that kind is practicable;
3. the tenant won't accept a tenancy of a smaller part of the property while the work is done;
4. the work is such that a tenancy of part isn't practicable.

The ground doesn't apply to a tenancy that arose by succession under the Rent Act. For commonhold units, the commonhold association can also be the person intending the works.

These rules apply to private assured tenancies in England only. Wales (Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016), Scotland and Northern Ireland have different law.

Before you serve: test the alternatives

Because the court asks whether the work could be done with the tenant still there, deal with the alternatives first:

1. Get a schedule of works from an architect or contractor, with a realistic timetable.
2. Ask the contractor to confirm in writing whether the work can be done with someone living there.
3. If access or part-occupation might work, offer it to the tenant in writing and keep their reply.
4. If neither is practicable, record why: no water or power for weeks, structural work throughout, or safety risks.

For the wider process, see evicting a tenant for redevelopment.

Section 8 Ground 6 notice period and the 6-month rule

You must give at least 4 months' notice, counted from the day you serve. The tenancy must also have begun at least 6 months before the date in Form 3A question 2.1. Because 4 months' notice already covers most of that, the 6-month rule only bites if you serve in the first couple of months of a tenancy:

Court proceedings must start within 12 months of service. Our Section 8 notice period calculator checks both rules.

Evidence to gather

• Plans, drawings and a specification of the works.
• Contractor quotes and a programme showing how long the work will take.
• Planning permission or building control applications, where the works need them.
• Proof you can pay for the work, such as funding or a mortgage offer.
• Your written offers of access or of a smaller part, and the tenant's replies.

How to explain Ground 6 in Form 3A question 4.3

In question 4.2, copy the full legal wording of Ground 6 from GOV.UK's legal wording document. In question 4.3, explain the facts in your own words. A short example for a fictional landlord:

Ground 6. I intend to carry out substantial works to the house: removing the rear wall to build a two-storey extension, full rewiring and replumbing, and replacing the roof (specification, contractor quote and building control application attached). The works will take about 16 weeks, during which there will be no water, heating or power. The contractor has confirmed the house cannot be occupied during the works. On 1 October 2026 I offered the tenant access arrangements in writing; the tenant refused on 10 October 2026 (letters attached).

What the court does

Ground 6 is mandatory. If you prove your intention and the other conditions, the court must order possession, subject to the limits in section 7 of the Housing Act 1988 and any human rights defence. The possession date is usually within 14 days, or up to 6 weeks for exceptional hardship. The tenant may challenge how firm your plans are, so read defended possession claims.

The statutory duty to pay the tenant's removal expenses now applies only to relevant social landlords letting social housing, so a private landlord using Ground 6 doesn't have to pay them under section 11. If you took a deposit, the court can only make the order once it is protected and the prescribed information has been given, or it has been returned.

Pitfalls and penalties

Watch out: never start works, cut off services or make the home unliveable to push the tenant out. That can amount to harassment, which can lead to prosecution or a council penalty of up to £40,000. See illegal eviction.

• Works not substantial enough. Cosmetic updates rarely qualify.
• Vague plans. No drawings, funding or contractor makes it hard to prove a genuine intention.
• Date too early. Missing the 6-month rule makes the notice defective, and serving a defective notice can attract a penalty of up to £7,000.
• No reasonable belief. Relying on the ground without reasonable belief that you could get possession risks a penalty of up to £7,000 if the tenant leaves within 4 months.

If the council has ordered you to act, for example by a prohibition order, Ground 6B may fit better.

What to do next

Get your works scheduled and costed, test the alternatives in writing, then prepare Form 3A. Our builder checks the 6-month rule and inserts the GOV.UK wording. Then compare options in the full list of Section 8 grounds.