"Today's figures underline the continuing imbalance between tenant demand and the supply of homes available to rent"
- Nathan Emerson - Propertymark
Average UK private rents reached £1,381 a month in April 2026, up 3.5% on the year before, according to provisional ONS figures. The annual growth rate edged up from 3.4% in the 12 months to March 2026, pointing to continued upward pressure despite some signs of easing in individual markets.
National and regional breakdown
Across the nations, England saw average rents rise to £1,438 (up 3.5%), Wales to £834 (up 4.9%) and Scotland to £1,019 (up 2.0%). In Northern Ireland, where data runs to February 2026, average rents reached £877, a 4.0% annual increase.
Regional variation within England remains pronounced. The North East recorded the highest annual rental inflation at 6.5%, unchanged from the previous month, with average rents there standing at £776.
London, at the other end of the scale, saw inflation of 2.0%, though its average rent of £2,290 remains the highest of any region by a considerable margin. Excluding London, Oxford posted the highest average rent among local areas at £1,956, while the lowest anywhere in the UK was £552 in Dumfries and Galloway.
Scotland's trajectory is worth noting. Its 2.0% annual rise is the lowest recorded in more than four years and marks a sustained deceleration from a record high of 11.7% in August 2023.
Northern Ireland has followed a similar path, with growth slowing from a peak of 9.9% in April 2024 to 4.0% in the latest data. Wales, by contrast, continues to see relatively strong growth, though its 4.9% rise remains well below its recent peak of 8.9% in March 2025.
Property sizes
Property size continues to shape rental costs significantly. Detached homes commanded the highest average monthly rent at £1,571, compared with £1,350 for flats and maisonettes. Across bedroom counts, four-bedroom-plus properties averaged £2,055 a month, against £1,121 for one-bedroom homes.
"Today's figures underline the continuing imbalance between tenant demand and the supply of homes available to rent," said Nathan Emerson, chief executive of Propertymark.
"While figures released today show an easing of inflation compared to the previous month, rents are still moving upwards because supply remains constrained in many local markets. Agents on the ground continue to report strong competition for good-quality rental homes, particularly for family properties and homes close to transport links and employment hubs.
"Many landlords are still weighing up rising costs, taxation and regulation, which is limiting the number of homes coming onto the market. What we are seeing is a supply issue rather than excessive demand. Without measures that support investment in the private rented sector, affordability pressures are likely to continue."
That supply constraint is increasingly reflected in how landlords and investors are approaching the market. "Landlord strategy is continuing to change," said Alex Upton, managing director of specialist mortgages and bridging finance at Hampshire Trust Bank.
"We're having far fewer conversations about expansion for the sake of growth, particularly as the Renters' Rights Act starts feeding into longer-term investment decisions. Investors are looking much more closely at which properties still work financially, where income is more resilient and how portfolios need to evolve over the next few years.
"At the smaller end of the market, some landlords are choosing to reduce exposure where higher borrowing costs and tighter regulation have changed the economics of certain properties. More experienced investors are still active, but they are approaching opportunities differently.
"We're seeing more interest in HMOs, mixed-use assets and properties where there is genuine scope to strengthen income over time, rather than simply adding units wherever possible. That shift is also changing the type of funding brokers are looking for.
"More cases now involve capital raising, restructuring existing borrowing or repositioning portfolios around a longer-term plan. Lenders need to understand how those portfolios operate in practice, not just how they fit inside a standard set of criteria. What brokers and landlords need now is consistency.
"Where funding remains accessible, and lenders continue to engage with more complex cases, confidence stays in the market and investment activity continues. That matters, because over time, confidence and availability play a major role in shaping the overall direction of the rental market."
With the Renters' Rights Act now in force and landlord costs showing little sign of easing, the structural factors driving rental inflation appear unlikely to resolve quickly. For tenants, particularly those in the North East and Wales where growth is running well above the national average, affordability looks set to remain a pressing concern throughout 2026.
