UK rents have hit record highs in six of the country's nine regions, according to the latest rental index data from flatshare site SpareRoom, as phase one of the Renters' Rights Act came into effect from 1 May.
East Anglia has seen the highest three-year rise in room rents, up 9.9%, followed by south-east England, up 9.5%, and south-west England, up 9.4%, which has also recorded the highest year-on-year increase at 1.6%. By country, rents hit record highs in both Wales and Northern Ireland.
In the three years to Q2 2026, rents have risen 12% in Northern Ireland and are up 3.8% year-on-year, with a record high seen in Belfast in Q2 at £600 per month. Rents in Wales have risen 9.3% over the same three-year period.
Meanwhile, flatshare supply has reversed course and started falling. Room ads decreased by 3.2% in the year to Q2, ending a three-year growth run:
- Q2 2026: down 3.2% year-on-year
- Q2 2025: up 8.7% year-on-year
- Q2 2024: up 24.2% year-on-year
- Q2 2023: up 15.0% year-on-year
Renting a room in the UK now costs £761 per month on average, a 0.5% increase on the previous year. Across the UK, rents have risen almost 7% over the past three years.
Regionally, the largest year-on-year rent rise has been in south-west England, up 1.6%, but comparing Q2 2026 with Q2 2023, East Anglia has seen the biggest three-year increase, with rents there up 9.9%. Greater London is the only region to have seen a year-on-year rent fall, with room rents in the capital down 0.2%.
Norwich has seen the highest increase in room rents, up 5.1%, while Lincoln has seen the biggest decrease, down 4%. London (£979), Edinburgh (£834) and Oxford (£814) have the most expensive room rents, while Lincoln (£510), Swansea (£532) and Sheffield (£533) have the cheapest.
However, Sheffield rents in Q2, at £533, matched the record high set in Q3 2025 and are rising 1.4% year-on-year. Rents in Liverpool hit a record high in Q2 at £556, rising 4.4% year-on-year.
What's driving record UK rents
"Rising rents across the country have to be addressed," said Matt Hutchinson, director at flatshare site SpareRoom.
"The Renters' Rights Act will improve standards, but it's only half the job. The next, crucial, step is to tackle affordability. You can't solve the housing crisis through regulation alone. Unless real action is taken to protect and expand rental supply, tenants will continue to face higher rents, shrinking choice, and even greater pressure in what is an already-stretched market.
"Flatsharing is the cheapest way to rent but the data shows it's far from immune to market pressures."
