Rents hit new high

Asking rents have risen to £1,190 a month outside the capital, while in London they are now above £2,500, Rightmove data shows.

Strong competition between renters, combined with rising inflation and energy costs, is squeezing landlords and tenants.

Between January and March there were 8% more properties available to rent than the year before, but that number is still nearly half what was seen in 2019.

Tim Bannister from Rightmove said: “We have seen some early signs of improvement on squeezed supply levels this year, though with no significant influx of new properties becoming available to rent currently on the horizon, the mismatch is set to continue for some time.

“Many agents are having to manage a very high volume of tenant enquiries for every property that they let in the current market.”

“Properties in popular areas within an affordable asking rent range of that local area are likely to be snapped up almost immediately, and on average homes are finding a tenant much more quickly than this time in 2019.

“Although there are some early signs that the gap between supply and demand is starting to narrow a little, it will still feel very competitive for tenants trying to secure a home.”

London rental growth has risen by 0.9% in the past three months, while across the UK the pace of growth has slowed in the past nine months.