Average rents on newly let properties rose 8.3% across Great Britain in the year to the end of January 2024, the slowest pace for 13 months, according to the latest data from Hamptons. This marks a change in tempo from 2023 when rental growth peaked at 12.0% last August and slowed slightly to 10.2% in December.

January was the first time that rental growth ran at a single-digit pace during the last six months. Just two regions, the East of England and the West Midlands recorded double-digit rental growth in January, down from a peak of six regions last August.

While eight of the 11 regions in Great Britain saw the pace of rental growth slow between August 2023 and January 2024, the slowdown was primarily driven by London. Annual rental growth in the capital more than halved between August and January, falling from 17.1% to 8.1%, meaning it recorded the slowest rental growth in two years.

Consequently, fewer landlords are securing a higher rent when re-letting their property. In January, 59% of landlords re-letting a home achieved a higher rent than they had previously, down from a peak of 81% in January 2022 and 79% in January 2023. Other landlords were able to achieve the same rent. Landlords in Yorkshire & The Humber were most likely to achieve an uplift, with 66% doing so.