The UK’s rent rises slow but house prices are up – ONS

Private rents across the UK continued to rise, though the pace eased towards the end of 2025.

New figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show average monthly rents climbed 4% over the year to December, reaching £1,368, down from 4.4% growth a month earlier.

England recorded typical rents of £1,424, up 3.9% annually.

Wales saw sharper pressure, with averages increasing 5.7% to £822, while Scotland posted more modest growth of 2.8%, taking rents to £1,018.

Northern Ireland followed a similar pattern to Wales, with rents up 5.7% to £873 in the year to October.

In England, the North East registered the strongest annual increase at 7.9%, while London saw rent rises slow to 2.1%.

Average house price up

The ONS also says that the average UK house prices rose 2.5% in the year to November, pushing the typical price to £271,000.

That’s up from 1.9% growth recorded a month earlier.

England’s average price reached £293,000, a 2.2% rise equating to £6,000 over 12 months.

Wales lagged, with values up just 0.7% to £209,000, representing a £2,000 annual increase.

Scotland outperformed both, recording 4.5% growth and lifting the average to £193,000.

Northern Ireland continues to lead on annual change with average prices climbed 7.1% year on year to £193,000, an increase of £13,000.

Property sector reaction

Alex Upton, the managing director of specialist mortgages at Hampshire Trust Bank, said: “While the latest ONS data shows a slowdown in rental growth, the underlying pressure has not gone away.

“Demand remains strong, supply is still tight, and that imbalance continues to feed through into pricing.”

Richard Donnell, executive director at Zoopla, said: “Rental inflation is slowing as the supply-demand gap narrows sharply.

“Improved affordability for first time buyers and a large drop in international migration means weaker rental demand, while there are 14% more homes for rent than a year ago, which is boosting choice for renters.

“Rental inflation is returning to normal and rents are on track to rise by just 2.5% in 2026, the lowest for four years.”

Nathan Emerson, the CEO of Propertymark, said: “Any increase in potential average rental costs rightly brings concerns for consumers, especially those who are squeezed by cost-of-living pressures.

“Although we have witnessed rental inflation trend further downwards, the rental market continues to suffer from a chronic undersupply of properties versus actual demand.”

Tom Bill, the head of UK residential research at Knight Frank, said: “UK rental inflation has eased, but we continue to see upwards pressure on rents in London and the south-east as more landlords sell up due to regulatory and tax changes.

“The Renters’ Rights Act will be a key test for the lettings market when it comes into effect this year.

“Some prospective landlords are holding off to see if the court system copes with the changes around no-fault evictions and whether the new rules raise the risk of void periods.”

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