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LONDON, Jan 28 (Reuters) - Advertised rents in Britain outside London have fallen on a quarterly basis for the first time since 2019 due mostly to a drop in demand from tenants, according to data published on Tuesday by property website Rightmove.
The average advertised rent for new private-sector tenancies outside London fell by 0.2% in the final quarter of 2024 to 1,341 pounds ($1,672) per month. That was 4.7% higher than a year earlier, the smallest annual increase since 2021.
Rents in London rose for a 13th quarter in a row but only by a marginal 0.1% to 2,695 pounds a month, 2.4% more than the year before.
Rents and house prices have been driven up by a lack of available property in Britain's housing market, something the government of Prime Minister Keir Starmer is aiming to address by relaxing planning rules for new construction.
Rightmove said the number of available rental properties on the market rose by 13% compared with a year earlier, helped by a 16% drop in the number of prospective tenants. However, applications stood at a still elevated 10 per rental property, double the number before the pandemic.
"Agents report that some tenants are choosing to stay put rather than move due to costs, and while there is evidence of some landlords choosing to exit the market, there are also signs that other, perhaps larger landlords are continuing to invest," Rightmove said.
Falling mortgage rates and rising wages were also allowing some tenants to buy their first home, Rightmove added. ($1 = 0.8021 pounds) (Writing by William Schomberg; editing by David Milliken)
