Rental growth for new lets in Britain continues to climb, reaching 1.9% year-on-year in July.
This figure – according to lettings agency Hamptons – takes the average rent back above £1,401 per month.
This is the fastest pace of rental growth recorded for new lets in 19 months.
The pickup in rental growth has primarily been driven by Southern England.
Here, newly agreed rents are now rising faster than anywhere else in the country, having lagged behind elsewhere in previous months.
Newly agreed lets in Outer London are now back above the £2,000 per month mark, having fallen below this level in early 2025.
While newly agreed lets in the South East passed the £1,500 per month for the first time in July.
The average rent in the South East of England in August 2023 is now the average rent nationally.
Annual rental growth for all rental homes (including both new lets and ongoing tenancies) has continued to edge down, falling from 2.2% in June to 2.1% in July.
This means the average tenant in Britain is paying £1,258 per month compared to the £1,401 paid by someone moving home.
Meanwhile, the size of the average rent increase where one takes place, now stands at 5.6%, up slightly from 5.5% last month and 5.1% earlier in the year.
At 7.7%, the size of the average increase in Scotland remains materially larger than in any other region of Britain.
Annual rental growth
| Region | New lets | All tenants | ||
| Average monthly rent | YoY change % | Average monthly rent | YoY change % | |
| Greater London | £2,308 | 0.6% | £2,147 | 0.7% |
| Inner London | £2,725 | 0.5% | £2,630 | -0.3% |
| Outer London | £2,001 | 0.8% | £1,792 | 1.9% |
| South | £1,388 | 2.8% | £1,234 | 2.5% |
| East of England | £1,279 | 1.9% | £1,190 | 3.1% |
| South East | £1,507 | 2.8% | £1,327 | 2.0% |
| South West | £1,317 | 3.7% | £1,139 | 2.7% |
| Midlands | £1,066 | 1.5% | £931 | 3.2% |
| East Midlands | £1,003 | -0.9% | £885 | 2.8% |
| West Midlands | £1,121 | 3.3% | £971 | 3.5% |
| North | £994 | 2.5% | £863 | 3.4% |
| North East | £865 | 1.7% | £773 | 3.5% |
| North West | £1,065 | 2.7% | £892 | 3.9% |
| Yorkshire and the Humber | £958 | 2.4% | £865 | 2.7% |
| Wales | £888 | 4.0% | £808 | 1.7% |
| Scotland | £1,064 | -0.2% | £853 | 3.3% |
| GB | £1,401 | 1.9% | £1,258 | 2.1% |
| GB (Ex London) | £1,169 | 2.5% | £1,031 | 2.8% |
Source: Hamptons using Connells Group data
David Fell, Lead Analyst at Hamptons, says: “While growth is still running below inflation, July still marked the eighth straight month in which the pace of rental growth has risen.
“Although these hikes may not be as large as in previous peak years, for landlords, the re-emergence of an upward trajectory in rents provides a counterweight to higher borrowing costs.”
