The cost of renting has dropped by 4.5% across the East of England, favouring today’s cohort of tenants, Goodlord’s Rental Index has found.
Those in the South West have also seen a 1% annual reduction in average rents in February 2026 year-on-year.
Rents are increasing in the North, rising by 9% in the North West and 5% in the North East.
William Reeve, chief executive of Goodlord, said: “Another month of cooling rental inflation reinforces the picture that the market is returning to some form of equilibrium after a series of record-breaking years.
“This is good news for tenants, particularly if rental price increases continue to sit below wage growth figures.
“It’s also a positive sign that there isn’t a supply shortage, despite the wider regulatory turbulence that landlords are navigating.
“If these trends continue into spring, it could provide a relatively benign backdrop for the Renters Rights Act implementation on 1 May.”
Month-on-month the biggest rise was in the North West, where prices rose by nearly 4% – up from £1,057 to £1,096.
The biggest fall was recorded in the South West, where prices dropped by over 3.5% – down from £1,253 in January to £1,208 in February.
