Countrywide says annual rate of rental growth picked up recently

The annual rate of rental growth picked up in November, with the cost of a new let across Great Britain rising 1.2 per cent over the last 12 months - or 1.6 per cent outside London.  

Countrywide, which released the data, says the pickup has been driven by rental growth in London retuning to positive territory; even so, after falls in eight of the last 12 months, rents in London are growing more slowly than anywhere else in the country.  

The Midlands (which annual growth hit 2.8 per cent) and Northern England (2.3 per cent) continue to see the fastest rate of growth.

“Rental growth in London is once again positive. Every region of Great Britain now has average rents higher than a year ago.  And it likely that relatively low numbers of rental homes coming onto the market will keep rental growth firmly in positive territory” says Johnny Morris, research director at Countrywide.

“But growth remains well below the long run average, with November 2017 marking the second year anniversary of the date when rents last rose by more than three per cent” he adds.

Yesterday we reported that Countrywide believed as many as one in every 12 homes that came on to the rental market in 2017 was for sale at some time in the previous six months - showing the huge effect of accidental landlords on swelling the supply of homes to let. 

The agency says this adds up to 80,000 homes in total and it is the third consecutive year that this proportion has increased although it remains well below the previous peak in 2010 where 11.2 per cent of homes that came onto the rental market had previously been put up for sale.

London is still the accidental landlord capital of the country, the agency says.  

In 2017 12.5 per cent of homes coming onto the rental market had previously been up for sale. This is the highest figure since Countrywide’s records began in 2007, surpassing the previous 12.1 per cent peak in 2010.