Benham and Reeves has found rents rose faster after the Renters’ Rights Act took effect in five English regions, even though England’s overall rate of rental growth held at 0.6 percent.
Its comparison of March-May with May-July puts the sharpest change in the West Midlands, where rents increased 0.8 percent after implementation against 0.2 percent in the preceding period. The North West rose 1.2 percent after May, compared with 0.7 percent before the Act.
The figures give landlords a timely reminder that a national rent headline can hide very different local conditions. Any rent review still needs local comparable evidence and the formal process introduced by the Act, particularly where tenant affordability is already limiting what a market can bear.
Regional rent growth moves unevenly after RRA
Across England, Benham and Reeves calculated that the average monthly rent increased from £1,442 in May to £1,451 in July – a 0.6 percent rise. That matches the 0.6 percent increase it recorded from £1,434 in March to £1,442 in May.
The regional pattern was less even. Yorkshire and the Humber and the North East both moved from 0.5 percent growth before implementation to 0.9 percent afterwards. London rose from 0.6 percent to 1 percent, taking the average monthly rent from £2,294 to £2,317.
The latest Landlord Knowledge report on rental demand and affordability found a more restrained national picture, with tenants’ budgets limiting growth in several areas. That is an important caution against reading Benham and Reeves’ short post-implementation comparison as proof that every landlord can achieve a larger increase.
Three regions saw slower rental growth
The East Midlands’ rate was unchanged at 0.4 percent. Growth slowed in the East of England, South West and South East, with the South East moving from 0.5 percent before May to 0.1 percent afterwards. Benham and Reeves says the results reflect an uneven return of tenant activity after a period in which households and landlords were adjusting to the new rules.
Marc von Grundherr, director of Benham and Reeves, said the Act had created uncertainty before implementation and that some tenants had delayed a move while waiting for clarity. He said demand had since begun to return, although the figures do not establish that the Act itself caused every regional change.
This follows Landlord Knowledge’s August coverage of ONS private-rent data, which recorded annual UK rental inflation of 3.7 percent while landlord supply remained under pressure. Benham and Reeves’ figures add a short-term, regional view: national growth has not accelerated, but it has done so in more than half of England’s regions.
What the regional data means for landlords
- If you are reviewing a rent: use current local comparables and the tenancy’s timing rather than applying a national or regional percentage automatically.
- Watch for: the South East, South West and East of England data, where the rate of growth slowed in Benham and Reeves’ comparison.
- Bottom line: demand may be firmer in parts of the country, but affordability and the Renters’ Rights Act process still set the limits on a sustainable increase.
Editor’s view
There is no single post-Act rental market. The useful part of this release is the split between regions: landlords who rely on a national average when setting a rent risk getting both the price and the compliance process wrong.
Author: Editorial Team – UK landlord & buy-to-let news, policy, and finance
Published: 10 September 2026
Sources: Benham and Reeves rental growth analysis, September 2026
Related reading: Hello Neighbour: rental demand settles as affordability caps rent growth
📘 Renters’ Rights Act: Complete Landlord Guide
Everything you need to know about the new rules – 1 May 2026
