The latest government figures show that average UK monthly private rents increased by 7.7%, to £1,332, in the 12 months to March.
This annual growth rate is down from 8.1% in the 12 months to February this year.
Average rents increased to £1,386 (7.8%) in England, £792 (8.9%) in Wales, and £1,001 (5.7%) in Scotland, in the 12 months to March 2025.
In England, private rents annual inflation was highest in the North East (9.4%) and lowest in Yorkshire and The Humber (4.6%), in the 12 months to March 2025. In Northern Ireland, average rents increased to £838 (8.2%) in the 12 months to January 2025.
Knight Frank’s head of residential research, Tom Bill, warns that the situation is likely to get worse for tenants. He says: “Upwards pressure on rents is likely to intensify as landlords leave the sector due to tougher green regulations, higher mortgage costs and the impact of the Renters Rights Bill, which makes it harder to regain possession of a property. Nobody would argue against protecting tenants from unscrupulous landlords, but the new legislation could be a lesson in the laws of unintended consequences.”
Greg Tsuman, lettings managing director at Martyn Gerrard Estate Agents, adds: “We’ve reached the upper limit of affordability for renters across the UK, and the gap between existing rents and newly agreed tenancies will likely continue to narrow. But for the millions relying on housing benefits, this slower pace of growth offers little relief. The gap between what tenants on benefits receive and what the market demands continues to grow. Since the pandemic, rents have increased by approximately 30%, creating a chasm between support levels and market reality.
“After a long-overdue uplift in Local Housing Allowance last April, rates are already frozen again until 2026, while rents keep climbing. Right now, just 2.5% of private rentals in England are affordable on housing benefit. Around 38% of private renters in England receive LHA support, and across the UK, more than 3.6 million households are now struggling to access an increasingly out-of-reach rental sector. The government’s plans to prevent income-based discrimination are welcome, but they ring hollow if renters on benefits are still effectively priced out.”
And Jeremy Leaf, north London agent and a former RICS residential chairman, see it this way: “In our offices, we have certainly noticed some pushback from tenants reluctant to pay ever-increasing rents, which has obliged some landlords to reduce their aspirations despite supply remaining tight.”
Nathan Emerson, chief executive of Propertymark, comments: “The rental sector continues to see sizeable challenges from a magnitude of different angles currently. We continue to see a considerable mismatch between supply and demand with an average of 10 people wishing to rent each property currently available across the UK. In addition, we are seeing vast legislative changes that will affect how and if some landlords are able to continue operating within the sector. Throughout the last 20 years renting a property has become enormously more popular with people, and it’s vital there is targeted support and investment in the sector to keep pace with ever intensifying demand.”
