The average price of rental property in England was £1,213 during March, marking the third consecutive month for rental growth, the Goodlord Rental Index reveals.
The latest data shows that year-on-year this is 4.6% higher than the £1,160 recorded in March last year.
Renters that signed new tenancies in March this year, paid £636 more per year, per property than the same month in 2024.
The South East saw the most significant rental growth over the last 12 months, increasing 6% YoY to £1,365 compared to £1,286 in March 2024.
West Midlands and the North West followed, with both regions recording a 5% year-on-year rent rise. The slowest year-on-year growth was seen in the East Midlands, coming in at under 3%.
Prices only went up by 0.33% between February and March, representing a £4 increase per property.
However, this slight increase compares with a slight decrease in rental averages during the same period last year, which Goodlord says indicates more momentum in the market than in 2024.
All regions monitored recorded a month-on-month rental increase, with the exception of the East Midlands which saw a 3% decrease during March as rents dropped from £1,018 to £987.
The largest rise in rents was recorded in Greater London, where they jumped up by over 1% from £2,021 to £2,045.
The length of time a property is vacant between lettings increased slightly during March with an average of 21 days compared to February’s 20 days.
However, voids in Greater London, the North West and the South West were shorter than in February.
The East Midlands and the North East saw no change to voids month-on-month, while the South East and West Midlands saw a lengthening of voids by two days and five days, respectively.
Goodlord chief executive officer William Reeve says: “We’ve long believed that rental prices didn’t reach their ceiling last summer and that this year will bring new rental cost highs.”
“The steady creep of price rises we’ve tracked in 2025 so far appears to bear this out. And whilst the data shows that the pace of these rent rises and the pressures of market demand can take on a strong regional flavour – meaning not all renters will be at the sharp end of these shifts – the overall picture is currently pointing to another year of record breaking rents.”
