Overview
- Rightmove’s latest index shows average advertised rents outside London were flat at £1,370 between late 2025 and early 2026, the first start‑of‑year pause since 2017.
- As a contrast to the wider slowdown, London’s average asking rent in the first quarter edged up 0.7% to £2,736 per month.
- Price cutting has become more common, with 26% of rental listings reduced, the highest share for this time of year since Rightmove began tracking in 2012.
- Tenant interest has cooled, with the typical listing now drawing eight enquiries, down from 11 a year ago and well below the 2022 peak of 29.
- Despite the pause overall, Rightmove named ten hotspots with sharp annual rent jumps led by Iver at 21.8%, with Paisley the only Scottish entry at 14.5%.