Asking rents in London are rising 8.7% a year despite a fall in tenant enquiries, says online agency Hello Neighbour.

The annual rise accelerated from 6.4% in June. 

At the same time, the average number of enquiries per available property fell to 34 in July from 43 in June.

That compares with 51 enquiries per property in July 2024 and 93 back in July 2023.

Hello Neighbour puts the trend down to reduced net migration.

It also reports a widening gap between advertised and achieved rents as tenants bargain more robustly.

Hello Neighbour claims the Renters Rights Act encouraging asking rents to be high initially because landlords and their agents can no longer accept offers above the advertised amount.

They also have a more complicated process to increase rents mid-tenancy.

The agency forecasts that rental growth will continue for the rest of 2026 and that demand will stabilise as a result of reduced net migration.