Yes, UK rents are still rising, and after more than a year of slowing the pace has turned up again. The ONS put average UK private rent at £1,400 a month in August 2026, up 3.8% on a year earlier, compared with 3.3% in May and June, which was the slowest rate since 2022. The cause is supply: fewer homes coming to the rental market while demand holds up, which matters more for your next rent review than any single headline.
Are UK rents still rising in September 2026?
Yes. The Office for National Statistics' Price Index of Private Rents, published on 16 September, shows annual rent inflation bottoming out in late spring and picking up over the summer (ONS, September 2026):
| 12 months to | UK annual rent inflation | UK average monthly rent |
|---|---|---|
| March 2026 | 3.4% | £1,377 |
| May 2026 | 3.3% | £1,383 |
| June 2026 | 3.3% | £1,388 |
| July 2026 | 3.7% | £1,393 |
| August 2026 | 3.8% | £1,400 |
The ONS index covers existing tenancies as well as new ones, so it moves slowly and lags the market. The indices that track new lets and advertised rents tell a similar story from different angles:
| Source (period) | What it measures | Latest level | Annual change |
|---|---|---|---|
| ONS PIPR (August 2026) | All private rents, UK | £1,400 | +3.8% |
| HomeLet (August 2026) | Achieved rents on new tenancies, UK | £1,382 | +4.1% |
| Zoopla (July 2026) | New-let rents, UK | £1,340 | +2.6% |
| Rightmove (Q2 2026) | Asking rents outside London | £1,397 | +2.3% |
HomeLet's figure is the one to watch: it is based on rents actually agreed on new tenancies and shows growth running above 4% (HomeLet Rental Index). Zoopla's lower new-let figure is for July, and Zoopla itself expects new-let rent growth to reach 4% to 5% by the end of 2026.
Why are rents speeding up again?
Because rental supply has started to shrink while demand has not. Zoopla's latest report, published on 14 September, found the number of homes available to rent fell 3% year on year in July, the first fall in three years, while enquiries per listing rose 6% to 5.3, the highest level in almost two years (The Negotiator). Rightmove reported the same turn in its second-quarter tracker: available rental homes dropped below the previous year's level for the first time since 2022.
Zoopla put the rise down to "scarcity rather than new regulations", and its executive director of research, Richard Donnell, points to low levels of new landlord investment and tenants renting for longer. Higher mortgage rates are part of that. Would-be first-time buyers facing fixed rates above 5% stay renting, and landlords facing the same rates buy fewer homes (see buy-to-let mortgage rates in September 2026).
The landlord side is mixed rather than a straightforward exodus. Hamptons' data shows the selling wave has slowed: 9.2% of homes listed for sale in June had been rented out in the previous five years, down from 11.3% a year earlier, and landlords bought 10.2% of homes sold in June, the first time since 2019 that they bought a bigger share than they sold (Hamptons). One reason is Ground 1A's 12-month re-letting ban: a landlord who serves notice to sell and then fails to sell cannot re-let for a year, which makes a speculative sale expensive.
Net result: the stock of rental homes is not growing, and rents follow.
Where are rents rising fastest?
In the North and in cheaper markets. The ONS figures for the year to August 2026:
| Area | Average monthly rent | Annual change |
|---|---|---|
| England | £1,459 | +4.0% |
| North East | £788 | +5.8% |
| North West | n/a | +5.8% |
| London | £2,332 | +3.5% |
| South East | n/a | +3.0% (lowest in England) |
| Wales | £846 | +4.3% |
| Scotland | £1,013 | +1.1% |
| Northern Ireland (June) | £874 | +1.6% |
London is the one to note. Its annual rent inflation was 2.0% in May and has now risen to 3.5%, and HomeLet puts new-tenancy rents in the capital up 5.1%. Zoopla found rents in areas averaging under £750 a month rising at 5.4%, roughly double the national new-let rate, with Dumfries (11.3%) and Carlisle (8.8%) at the top of its postal-area list. Compare your own area with the national picture in our rental yield by postcode guide.
Will tenants challenge a rent increase?
More of them are, and it costs you time even when you win. Since 1 May 2026 the only way to raise rent on a periodic tenancy in England is a Section 13 notice, once a year, with two months' notice. Tenants can ask the First-tier Tribunal to decide the open market rent, and the tribunal cannot set a figure above what you proposed. The new rent is not backdated: it starts after the tribunal decides.
A Freedom of Information response from the Ministry of Justice, reported by Landlord Studio, showed tribunal applications running at 10.8 a day in the first 45 days after 1 May, against 6.9 a day from February to April, a 58% rise. The median time from application to decision was 13.4 weeks (Landlord Studio).
On 9 September the government announced that HMRC's Valuation Office will take over decisions on rent challenges in England, to resolve them faster. No start date has been set. Until then challenges still go to the tribunal, and tenants who challenge do not pay the higher rent until it decides (GOV.UK). Our Section 13 guide walks through the notice itself.
How much should I put the rent up? A worked example
Say you let a flat in Manchester at £1,100 a month to a tenant who moved in during 2025, and comparable flats nearby are now letting at £1,170. You have two options:
| Option A: evidence-led | Option B: ask high | |
|---|---|---|
| Proposed rent | £1,160 (+5.5%) | £1,250 (+13.6%) |
| Likely response | Accepts | Challenges at tribunal |
| Rent after a decision | £1,160 | £1,170 at best (the market rent) |
| Months at old rent while waiting | 0 | About 3 |
| Extra rent in year one | £720 | About £630 |
Asking high earns you less in the first year even if the tribunal sides with the market, because roughly three months pass at the old rent. And if the tenant leaves instead, a four-week void on £1,100 a month costs about £1,015 in lost rent before council tax and re-letting fees, more than a year's worth of the increase.
The lesson is to propose a figure you can back with two or three comparable lettings, close to or slightly below the market. Hamptons found sitting tenants' rent rises averaged 5.4%, well ahead of new-let growth, so existing rents are catching up with the market anyway. Check your figure against local evidence with the rent calculator before serving notice.
What does this mean for a landlord with 1 to 10 properties?
Rent growth of around 4% helps your yield and your mortgage stress test at a time when borrowing costs are rising again. But you only get one increase a year per tenancy, so use it well:
- Review every tenancy's anniversary date and plan which month each Section 13 notice goes out.
- Keep a file of comparables for each property. It is your evidence if a tenant challenges.
- Price for the tenant you have. A good tenant who stays is worth more than the last £50 a month.
- Model the next year at current rents against your remortgage dates, not at the rent you hope for.
Scotland and Wales work differently. In Scotland, rents rose just 1.1%, and under the Housing (Scotland) Act 2025 ministers can designate rent control areas capping increases at CPI plus 1 point, up to 6%, with councils' first rent assessments due by 31 May 2027. In Wales, where rents rose 4.3%, First Minister Rhun ap Iorwerth told the Senedd in mid-September that his government is exploring ways to regulate rent increases, but only after "considerable policy development, evidence gathering and cross-party and cross-sector engagement" (NRLA). Section 13 and the tribunal rules above apply to England.
This is general information, not financial or legal advice. Rent data is revised and local markets vary, so check current comparables before setting any rent.
