The latest (August 2023) Hamptons Monthly Lettings Index has revealed that the average rate of annual rental growth on a newly let property in Great Britain (GB) hit 12.0% in August, the fastest pace since the Hamptons Lettings index began in 2014.

This marked only the fifth month in more than a decade that annual rental growth has run at a double-digit pace, four of which have occurred in the past 12 months.

August’s rate of growth surpassed the previous record of 11.5% which was set in May 2022. This growth has left new tenants paying an average of £140 per month more than they were at the same time last year.

The average GB rent crossed the £1,300pm mark for the first-time last month, just 11 months after passing the £1,200pm mark and 37 months after last passing the £1,000pm threshold. This has left rents standing 29% or £296 a month higher than in January 2020 - the eve of the pandemic. Consequently, 68% of the rental growth over the last decade has come in the months since the onset of Covid, with the average rent on a newly let home costing £436 a month more than in August 2013.

However unlikely, should annual rental growth continue running at the current rate of 12.0%, it would take just under four years for the average monthly rent in Great Britain to pass £2,000pm. Yet, if rents rose at the pre-Covid (2016-19) average of 2.0%, it would take 29 years.

Following the average one-bed, which passed the £1,000pm mark four months ago, August saw the average two-bed pass £1,200pm. Rental growth across different property sizes has converged in recent months, with the pace of growth for larger homes catching up with smaller homes.