Across Great Britain the pace of rental growth continued to climb in June, with rents rising 8.5 per cent year-on-year.

The data comes from Connells-owned agency Hamptons.

The firm says four of the 10 fastest months for rental growth over the last decade have been since the onset of the pandemic.

Stock scarcity has become a pressing issue, with 46 per cent fewer homes on the market than at the same time two years ago.  

In rural and suburban areas, the drop in rental homes on the market has been even greater.

Outside London, rents rose 10.9 per cent annually – the fastest rate of growth recorded during any time since 2014. Six regions saw rental growth hit double digits in June, up from five in May.  

Last month eight of the 11 GB regions recorded the biggest annual increases since the lettings index began in 2014.  Wales, the West Midlands and London were the only regions not to register record rental growth. 

Aneisha Beveridge, head of research at Hamptons, says: “Nationally, the last 12 months have seen five years of pre-pandemic growth squeezed into a year.  

“Rents are rising at such a pace that monthly rental growth figures could, in more normal times, be mistaken for annual ones.  While this growth is underpinned by a lack of stock, it will ultimately be tapered by affordability.”