Rents outside London stall

Asking rents outside London were flat in the first quarter of 2026, the first start-of-year stall since 2017. (independent.co.uk) Rightmove said average advertised rents outside the capital held at £1,370 a month between the fourth quarter of 2025 and the first quarter of 2026. In London, average asking rents rose 0.7% over the same period to £2,736 a month. (rightmove.co.uk; independent.co.uk) The slowdown showed up in listing behavior as well. Rightmove said 26% of rental listings had a price reduction, the highest share for this time of year since its records began in 2012, and the average rental home drew eight inquiries, down from 11 a year earlier and 29 at the 2022 peak. (independent.co.uk; standard.co.uk) The market had already been cooling before this quarter. Rightmove said rents outside London fell 1.1% in the fourth quarter of 2025 to £1,370, only the second quarterly drop in five years, and annual rent growth for 2025 slowed to 2.2%, the weakest year-end increase since 2018. (rightmove.co.uk) Supply has improved, but it is still tight by longer-term standards. Rightmove said the number of available rental homes was 9% higher than a year earlier in late 2025, yet still 33% below the level of 10 years ago. (rightmove.co.uk) Rightmove linked the pause to lower tenant demand, a wider choice of homes, and affordability limits after years of rent increases. Property expert Colleen Babcock said landlords now need to price homes “correctly for the current market” as lets take longer and tenants have more room to choose. (independent.co.uk; standard.co.uk) Agents did not describe a collapse in demand. Adam Jennings of Chestertons said lettings activity picked up toward the end of March and that well-presented, correctly priced homes were still letting quickly in areas where supply remains constrained. (standard.co.uk) The pause also does not mean rents are low. Rightmove said tenants were paying more than £400 a month more on average than five years earlier by mid-2025, and it is still forecasting a further 2% rise in average rents during 2026. (rightmove.co.uk; rightmove.co.uk) So the first-quarter standstill looks less like a reset than a breather: rents outside London stopped rising for now, but they stopped at £1,370 a month. (independent.co.uk; rightmove.co.uk)