Can I Use My Letting Agent’s Address Instead of My Own for Section 48?

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Yes – a landlord can use their letting or managing agent’s address to satisfy Section 48 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1987, provided the agent has agreed to this and the address is a genuine physical location in England or Wales. The law does not require the address to belong to the landlord personally; it only requires that notices served there will reliably reach the landlord.

Why this option exists

Section 48 exists to guarantee tenants a working channel to serve legal notices, not to force disclosure of a landlord’s personal address. This is explicitly recognised in guidance from bodies such as the NRLA, and is a particularly common solution for landlords living overseas, who must provide an address within England or Wales regardless of where they actually reside – in these cases, a solicitor’s or agent’s UK address is often the only practical option.

The catch: it isn’t automatic

Using an agent’s address for Section 48 purposes requires that agent’s consent — it isn’t something a landlord can assume or apply retroactively. If a managing arrangement ends, or the agent stops handling that correspondence, the landlord must issue tenants with an updated Section 48 notice showing the new address. Relying on an agent also means the landlord has less direct control over how quickly notices are forwarded.

The alternative: a dedicated correspondence address

For landlords who self-manage, or who want a stable address that doesn’t change if they switch agents, a dedicated UK correspondence address service achieves the same legal outcome as using an agent — a valid, reliable England/Wales address for service — without tying Section 48 compliance to a third-party business relationship, and without exposing a home address in the process.

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