LawDepot vs OpenRent vs SignWise: Tenancy Agreements in England (2026 Comparison)

What changed on 1 May 2026 for England tenancy templates

On 1 May 2026, Phase 1 of the Renters' Rights Act 2025 (2025 c. 26) came into force across the private rented sector in England under the Renters' Rights Act 2025 (Commencement No. 2 and Transitional and Saving Provisions) Regulations 2026 (SI 2026/421). Overnight, the legal specification for a private residential tenancy agreement in England changed from the pre-2026 fixed-term Assured Shorthold Tenancy (AST) to the Assured Periodic Tenancy.

Under sections 16D to 16I of the Housing Act 1988 and the Assured Tenancies (Private Rented Sector) (Written Statement of Terms etc and Information Sheet) (England) Regulations 2026 (SI 2026/324), a compliant post-1 May 2026 tenancy document workflow must do far more than fill in names and addresses:

1. Embed all 19 mandatory written-statement items (SI 2026/324 Schedule, Part 1 & Part 2): Every new assured tenancy must be preceded or accompanied by a written statement covering paragraphs 1 to 19 of the Schedule to SI 2026/324—including the statutory notice-to-quit rules, section 11 and section 9A repairing and fitness duties, electrical and gas safety wording, Equality Act 2010 section 190 disability adaptation wording, section 16A pet consent wording, and (where applicable) section 16D(3) prior notice of Schedule 2 possession grounds (Ground 4A student HMO, Grounds 2ZB/2ZD superior long lease ending, or Ground 5C employment).
2. Exclude banned clauses that attract civil penalties (Housing Act 1988 s.16E & s.13(4A)): Purporting to grant a fixed term, requiring more than 2 months' tenant notice to quit (Protection from Eviction Act 1977 s.5(1ZA)), demanding more than 1 period's rent in advance (Housing Act 1988 s.4B), or attempting to exclude Section 13 rent increase rules exposes a landlord to local housing authority civil penalties of up to £7,000 for a first breach and up to £40,000 for persistent or repeat breaches.
3. Calculate statutory financial caps to the penny (Tenant Fees Act 2019 Schedule 1): The tenancy deposit must be capped at 5 weeks' rent (where annual rent is under £50,000) or 6 weeks' rent (where annual rent is £50,000 or more), and any holding deposit at 1 week's rent, floored to the penny (annual_rent ÷ 52).

Because private landlords typically sign only one or two tenancies a year, many search for a one-off, England-specific tenancy agreement without signing up to an ongoing legal-template subscription or moving their entire tenant onboarding workflow into a third-party letting portal. Below is an objective, side-by-side comparison of the main options available to landlords in England.

Interactive Check: Not sure whether your current paperwork meets the post-1 May 2026 requirements? Use our free Renters' Rights Act 2025 Compliance Checker or check your exact 5-week limit with the Tenant Fees Act Deposit Cap Calculator.

Side-by-side comparison: SignWise vs LawDepot vs OpenRent vs Rocket Lawyer vs Simply-Docs

Comparative data disclosure: The table below compares published commercial models, pricing structures, and feature scopes for residential landlords in England as verified from each provider's public website in October 2026. All third-party trademarks belong to their respective owners. Prices and features of third-party providers may change; always check the provider's current terms before purchasing.

Pricing models compared: one-off fee vs recurring trial vs letting portal

When landlords search for an England tenancy agreement online, the available tools fall into four distinct commercial models. Understanding what each model is built for helps you avoid paying for features you do not need—or forgetting to cancel a recurring subscription after downloading a single PDF.

1. Subscription template libraries (LawDepot, Rocket Lawyer)

Platforms such as LawDepot and Rocket Lawyer are general-purpose legal template libraries covering hundreds of personal and business documents (from wills and power of attorney to NDAs, employment contracts, and property agreements).

• When they make sense: If you run a business that needs dozens of different commercial, HR, and property templates every month—or if you want Rocket Lawyer's paid membership bolt-ons for general legal Q&A—a monthly subscription (~£35–£40/month) can be cost-effective.
• What single-let landlords should watch for: Most landlords only need a tenancy agreement once every 12 to 24 months. If you start a 7-day trial to download a single tenancy agreement and forget to cancel before the trial expires, two months of subscription fees (£70–£80) will cost more than twice the price of a full one-off Landlord Pack. Furthermore, general template forms typically expect you to calculate your own 5-week Tenant Fees Act deposit cap and 30-day Housing Act 2004 deadline before typing the numbers into the form.

2. Full-workflow letting portals (OpenRent "Rent Now")

OpenRent is one of the UK's largest property advertising and tenant-onboarding portals. Its Rent Now service (£49–£69 per tenancy) includes an England assured periodic tenancy agreement alongside portal-based referencing hooks, initial rent and deposit collection, and automatic deposit registration.

• When it makes sense: If you found your tenant on OpenRent and want OpenRent to collect the first month's rent, register the deposit in their connected scheme account, and have every tenant sign inside the OpenRent portal, Rent Now is a well-established end-to-end letting workflow.
• What independent landlords should watch for: You cannot simply buy OpenRent's tenancy agreement as a standalone £19 downloadable PDF without putting your tenant through the Rent Now portal workflow (where the tenant creates an OpenRent account and pays holding/move-in funds through OpenRent). If you already know your tenant, manage renewals or room lets directly, protect deposits in your own DPS, MyDeposits, or TDS account, or need a standalone Section 16D Written Statement (WS) for an existing oral tenancy, a portal-locked workflow is often unnecessary.

3. Annual Word-template folders (Simply-Docs)

Simply-Docs charges an annual subscription (£38.50 + VAT = £46.20/year) for access to its Property Documents folder of downloadable Microsoft Word (.doc / .docx) templates.

• When it makes sense: Property managers who prefer manually editing raw Word documents across multiple properties and who maintain their own internal compliance checklists.
• What to watch for: Raw Word templates contain bracketed optional clauses ([insert date], [delete as appropriate]). They do not run deterministic validation on your inputs—meaning if you accidentally leave a fixed-term clause in place, miscalculate a 5-week deposit cap by £2, or miscount a Form 4A Box 4.6 rent period start date, the Word processor will not warn you.

4. Deterministic one-off statutory publishing (SignWise)

SignWise is built exclusively for private residential landlords in England (GB-ENG) who want a one-off, deterministic document generator with zero subscriptions and zero portal lock-in:

• £19 one-off for an Assured Periodic Tenancy Agreement (TA) (which automatically embeds the mandatory 19-item SI 2026/324 Written Statement as Part A and a tailored Move-in Statutory Compliance & Deposit Protection Schedule as Part C).
• £39 one-off for the complete Landlord Pack (PACK), which bundles the Tenancy Agreement (TA), standalone Written Statement (WS), Move-in Inventory & Schedule of Condition (INV), and 1 official Form 4A Rent Increase (RI) credit (worth £61 individually—saving £22).
• £15 one-off for a standalone Section 16D Written Statement (WS) or Move-in Inventory (INV), and £12 one-off for an Official Form 4A Rent Increase Pack (RI).

How each option handles Renters' Rights Act 2025 & SI 2026/324 rules

Under the Renters' Rights Act 2025, the biggest compliance risks for landlords are no longer obscure drafting technicalities—they are arithmetic and statutory-condition errors that trigger strict-liability civil penalties or invalidate notices. Here is how a deterministic questionnaire engine differs from a fill-in-the-blanks template:

1. Part A (SI 2026/324 Schedule) + Part B Contract Integration: Under section 16D(4) of the Housing Act 1988, the landlord must provide the prescribed written statement of terms before the tenancy is entered into, and SI 2026/324 reg 2(3) permits those 19 mandatory items to be included inside a written tenancy agreement given before signing. SignWise structures every Tenancy Agreement (TA) into Part A (the exact 19 statutory items required by SI 2026/324), Part B (clear operational terms covering care of the property, keys, utilities, and data protection), and Part C (your dated Pre-Move-In Statutory Audit, 30-day Deposit Protection Schedule, and Handover Receipt).
2. Prior Notice of Special Possession Grounds (Housing Act 1988 s.16D(3)): If you ever intend to rely on Ground 4A (HMO let to full-time students), Grounds 2ZB/2ZD (superior lease granted for over 21 years coming to an end), or Ground 5C (accommodation let in consequence of employment), statute requires specific written notice before the tenancy is entered into—including the exact statutory wording required by Ground 4A(c). SignWise asks whether any of these apply and inserts the exact statutory wording automatically.
3. Hard Mathematical Blocks on Unlawful Inputs: If you enter an annual rent of £18,000 (£1,500/month) and try to enter a deposit of £1,800, SignWise's @signwise/calc engine immediately flags that £1,730.76 (floorToPenny((18000 / 52) × 5)) is your statutory ceiling under Tenant Fees Act 2019 Schedule 1 paragraph 2, preventing you from issuing a non-compliant contract.
4. No Re-Typeset Statutory Forms: When you use SignWise for a Section 13 rent increase (RI), SignWise never re-typesets Form 4A into a custom Word lookalike. It populates the official GOV.UK Form 4A AcroForm PDF (SI 2026/354, version 05.26) byte-for-byte and appends a separate Certificate of Service and Section 14 Tribunal Comparable Rent Schedule.

Which option fits your situation?

• Choose GOV.UK (Free) if you already have a valid written Assured Shorthold Tenancy signed before 1 May 2026 and simply need to download The Renters' Rights Act Information Sheet 2026 (SI 2026/324 reg 3), or if you are comfortable manually calculating your own Box 4.6 rent period dates on a blank Form 4A PDF.
• Choose OpenRent ("Rent Now", £49–£69) if you advertised the property on OpenRent and want OpenRent to handle portal-based tenant onboarding, initial rent collection, and deposit registration on your behalf.
• Choose LawDepot or Rocket Lawyer if you want an ongoing monthly subscription covering a wide range of general business, commercial, or personal templates beyond residential lettings in England.
• Choose SignWise (£19 Tenancy Agreement / £39 Complete Landlord Pack) if you want an England-specific, post-1 May 2026 Assured Periodic Tenancy Agreement with built-in @signwise/calc statutory math, zero recurring subscriptions, no portal lock-in for your tenants, and instant PDF downloads ready to print or e-sign.

Start Now: Create your Assured Periodic Tenancy Agreement (£19) or Get the Complete Landlord Pack: TA + WS + Inventory + Form 4A Credit (£39).