There was a 1.6 % fall in rents on renewed tenancies across Great Britain in May, the third consecutive monthly drop, according to the latest figures from Hamptons International.
London and the South East were the only regions where rents fell annually, down 4.7% and 1.2% year-on-year respectively.
Meanwhile outside of London, rents somewhat surprisingly increased 0.9% year-on-year.
Scotland recorded the strongest rental growth last month, up 3.6% year-on-year, followed by Wales and the north of England at 3.4% and 2.3% respectfully.
Average rent of renewed tenancies (pcm)
|
Region |
May-19 |
May-20 |
YoY |
|
Greater London |
£ 1,696 |
£ 1,617 |
-4.7% |
|
South East |
£ 1,004 |
£ 992 |
-1.2% |
|
South West |
£ 774 |
£ 782 |
1.0% |
|
East of England |
£ 923 |
£ 934 |
1.2% |
|
Midlands |
£ 656 |
£ 661 |
0.8% |
|
North |
£ 600 |
£ 614 |
2.3% |
|
Scotland |
£ 632 |
£ 655 |
3.6% |
|
Wales |
£ 609 |
£ 630 |
3.4% |
|
Great Britain |
£ 939 |
£ 924 |
-1.6% |
|
Great Britain excluding London |
£ 745 |
£ 752 |
0.9% |
Source: Hamptons International
Aneisha Beveridge, head of research at Hamptons International, commented: “Despite the rise in demand from tenants looking to move home as the housing market reopened last month, income pressures continued to weigh on rental growth.
“Rents on renewed tenancies in Great Britain fell 1.6% in May, however this figure masks regional variations.
“London and the South East, where incomes are most constrained, saw rents fall for the third consecutive month. However outside of the capital, rents continued to rise, which is a reversal of the trends we saw this time last year.”
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