Average rents in Scotland for new tenancies in the private rented sector (PRS) have risen by double digits for the fifth time in a row since the introduction of the Cost of Living (Tenant Protection) (Scotland) Act 2022.

The new figures from lettings portal Citylets underline what many in the industry feared; that the legislation to cap part of the market would impact adversely on new rental prices.

The picture within Scotland’s main cities was mixed with the rate of growth in the central belt easing, which will be welcome news to tenants, whilst Aberdeen posted the strongest annual growth at almost 10%, which will be welcomed by landlords where rental values are only now returning towards pre-financial crash levels.

However, the overall picture for Scotland was still double-digit year-on-year (y-o-y) growth for the country as a whole at 12.9%, sending average rents to £1,097 per month. Edinburgh and Glasgow recorded single digit rises for the first time in two years at 9.7% and 6.1%, respectfully.

This year will be another year of change for the Scottish PRS with the ending of the emergency Cost of Living (Tenant Protection) (Scotland) legislation, which put a cap on rent rises within existing tenancies.

However, rents will likely remain controlled through new, temporary legislation that is designed to mitigate sharp increases by landlords where rents may be considerably below open market rent values.