Folder with blank form fields, dated letter card and binder clips — The dated agent letter starts the Ground 1A evidence file.

How to File the Sale-Intention Evidence for Ground 1A

Build a dated Ground 1A sale-intention file around the GOV.UK estate-agent example, indexed for this England address—not Form 3A or N5/N119.

14 October 2026•4 min read•Article•IziRento Editorial

Rental operations notes from the IziRento team. Not legal advice.

Key takeaways

Under Ground 1A in England, a landlord who intends to sell must be ready to prove that intention if the tenant does not leave. GOV.UK names proof of instructing an estate agent as one example; there is no closed official document list. Build one dated sale-intention file for this address, keep the agent instruction as the core item, index the copies, and leave Form 3A service and any later claim pack in their own slots.

A Ground 1A sale-intention evidence file is the dated pack that shows you intend to sell a privately rented home in England—not the section 8 notice and not the court claim. GOV.UK’s repossession guidance says you must provide evidence to prove the grounds used to seek possession, and for intention to sell that could include proof that an estate agent has been instructed. Assemble that dated proof for this address, index it, and stop before filling Form 3A or N5/N119.

Do keep dated proof of intention to sell in this file. Do not treat competitor document lists as a statutory checklist GOV.UK did not print. Completing and serving Form 3A belongs in its own serve file; the N5 and N119 papers belong in the later claim pack.

Disclaimer: IziRento is operations software, not legal advice. Local tenancy rules vary; check a qualified adviser for binding decisions.

What GOV.UK expects you to prove

Since 1 May 2026, private landlords in England cannot use section 21. A section 8 notice must use Form 3A (or a form substantially to the like effect), give the right notice, and set out the ground and the reasons why it applies. Serving that notice is a separate file. The question here is narrower: if you rely on Ground 1A, what dated papers show a live intention to sell for this address?

Ground 1A is a mandatory ground when it applies: if the court is satisfied the ground is made out, it must make a possession order. GOV.UK’s landlord grounds guidance says you can use it when you intend to sell; you cannot ask the tenant to leave within the first 12 months for this reason; you must give 4 months’ notice before applying to court; and notice may be served earlier but must not expire inside that protected period. Most social landlords cannot use it. Pre-1 May 2026 non-shorthold assured tenancies cannot use it either.

The Form 3A legal wording for Ground 1A frames the intention as selling a freehold or leasehold interest, or granting a lease for a term certain of more than 21 years that is not terminable early by notice. Schedule 1 to the Renters’ Rights Act 2025 inserts the same ground into the Housing Act 1988 and does not list evidence documents. Ground 1—moving in yourself or a qualifying family member—is a different ground and stays out of this sale file. If the home is outside England, stop and use that jurisdiction’s rules instead.

A chat that “we’ll put it on the market” is not dated proof. Build the file early so the papers exist if the tenant stays. Official pages require evidence to prove the ground to the court; they do not create a statutory duty to pack before you serve Form 3A. Deposit protection can still block a possession order on most grounds—keep that in the deposit scheme reference file. Misusing possession grounds can have serious consequences.

One official example, not a closed checklist

Four evidence checklist cards for Ground 1A proof lanes — GOV.UK expects dated proof of a live Ground 1A intention.

One official example, not a closed checklist

Checklist cards for the dated estate-agent letter example — The official example is a dated agent letter, not a closed list.

Estate-agent instruction is an example

GOV.UK’s repossession guide names proof that you have instructed an estate agent as an example of evidence that you intend to sell. Neither that guide nor the Ground 1A wording prints a closed sale-document list. Listing screenshots, draft contracts, conveyancer letters, and similar packs online are market practice—not statutory minima. Prefer the official example unless another dated paper truly shows the same live intention for this address.

Build the sale-intention file in order

Work through one England private assured letting at a time. These steps pack intention evidence only—they do not draft Form 3A, choose a service method, or calculate a 4-month notice diary. Agent engagement papers can sit beside other records in a letting-agent handover property file; keep this pack labelled for Ground 1A.

Four folder stages from confirm ground through store and stop — Build the evidence file in order, then stop before Form 3A.

Sale-intention evidence file

Confirm Ground 1A can apply here
Check this is an England private assured letting where you intend to sell (or grant a qualifying long lease), not a pre-1 May 2026 non-shorthold assured tenancy, and not a case where GOV.UK says most social landlords cannot use the ground. If the tenancy is still inside the first 12 months, check the official protected-period rule: notice may be served earlier, but it must not expire before that period ends.
Keep a dated estate-agent instruction
Obtain a dated instruction or agency engagement that shows the agent has been asked to sell this property. Keep a copy—that is the core example named on GOV.UK. An undated chat or a blank Form 3A in the inbox does not replace it. If you already hold agent terms or a signed engagement letter, file the dated copy against this address.
Add only papers that show the same intention
Add other contemporaneous papers only when they show the same live intention to sell this home. Date every item. Do not invent a closed national list from competitor checklists. Keeping only the agent instruction still matches the official example.
Index the pack for this address
For each document, note what it is, the date on it, and that it supports Ground 1A intention to sell. Index for this address so the pack can travel if a court asks for evidence. Do not turn the index into Form 3A field notes.
Store the copies and stop
Store the dated copies with the index. Leave Form 3A completion and service in the Form 3A serve file. If the tenant stays after a valid notice, hand these indexed copies into the later N5/N119 claim pack—do not fill those forms here.

Keep three possession slots apart

Sale intention, the section 8 notice, and a possession claim sit next to each other in time. Mixing them is how a blank Form 3A ends up with no dated sale proof beside it. The table keeps the slots separate: what each holds and when it starts, without teaching form fields or filing steps.

Three slots around Ground 1A

Slot	What it holds	When it starts
Sale-intention evidence file (this page)	Dated proof of intention to sell under Ground 1A, with the estate-agent instruction (or equivalent dated engagement) as the core example, indexed for this address	When you decide to rely on Ground 1A and have papers showing a live intention to sell
Form 3A serve file	The completed section 8 notice (Form 3A or substantially to the like effect), with the ground and reasons set out, plus proof of service kept separately	When you are ready to serve a valid notice—not while assembling intention copies alone
N5/N119 claim pack	The paper possession claim and particulars after a valid notice has expired and the tenant has stayed; indexed sale-intention copies may travel with that pack	Only if the tenant does not leave by the notice date—do not fill N5 or N119 here

Boundary questions before you mix the packs

Once the pack is indexed, a few boundary questions still come up before anyone starts the notice or the claim forms.

FAQ

Is there an official document list for Ground 1A sale intention?

No closed list appears on the GOV.UK repossession guide or in the Ground 1A statutory wording. The repossession page names proof that you have instructed an estate agent as an example. Treat other online packs as market practice, not as a statutory checklist.

Is the estate-agent instruction enough on its own?

It is the concrete example GOV.UK gives for evidence that you intend to sell. Keep a dated copy. Whether a court later asks for more is case-specific; do not invent a national minimum pack beyond that example. Add other papers only when they show the same live intention for this address.

Where does Form 3A stop and this file start?

This file holds dated intention evidence. Form 3A is the section 8 notice vehicle: it must set out the ground and why it applies, with the correct notice period. Completing, serving, and proving service belongs in the Form 3A serve file, not in this index.

What if the tenant stays after the notice ends?

GOV.UK says you need to give evidence to the court to prove the grounds if the tenant does not leave by the end of the notice period. For grounds other than rent-only, that path uses the paper claim with N5 and N119. Hand the indexed copies into that later pack. Do not fill N5 or N119 here.

Stop when the intention file is indexed

Stop when the file holds dated proof of intention to sell under Ground 1A for this address, with the estate-agent instruction or equivalent dated engagement as the core example and the pack indexed. Leave Form 3A service in its own slot. If the tenant stays after a valid notice, the indexed copies may go to court with the later claim pack—do not fill N5 or N119 here.

There is no closed GOV.UK document list for sale intention, so do not add a competitor pack as if it were required. IziRento stores the dated agent instruction and other sale-intention copies you keep. It does not instruct the agent, serve Form 3A, or file at court. When a sale has already changed who the landlord is, use the sitting-tenant new-landlord notice instead.

Build a dated Ground 1A sale-intention file around the GOV.UK estate-agent example, indexed for this England address—not Form 3A or N5/N119.

Sources

Next steps