Zoopla said rents in Britain’s cheaper rental markets rose fastest in May 2026, with annual growth hitting 5% in areas where monthly rents are below £750 as limited supply kept pressure on prices.
The property portal said that was more than double the national annual rental inflation rate of 2.1%. Carlisle, Kilmarnock and Halifax were among the fastest-rising local markets, while rents fell in Bournemouth, Nottingham and Birmingham as affordability pressure capped growth.
For landlords, the message is mixed. Rent growth is no longer broad-based, but pricing power remains in cheaper markets where supply is tight and new investment has not kept up. Zoopla said each UK region and country still has 20% to 30% fewer homes to rent than before the pandemic, even though earnings have been rising faster than rents nationally.
Cheaper markets still have headroom for rent growth
Zoopla’s figures suggest affordability is now driving a sharper regional split in the rental market. In higher-cost areas, stretched tenant budgets are holding back increases. In lower-cost locations, landlords still have more scope to raise rents without hitting the same ceiling.
The report says rents in the most affordable markets are rising at over twice the national pace, despite a broader easing in demand. That helps explain why local winners can still post strong growth even as the headline national rate slows.
Richard Donnell, executive director at Zoopla, said the market was becoming less overheated for renters but warned that supply remained the underlying issue. He said: “Each UK region/country has 20-30% fewer homes to rent than before the pandemic, with a lack of new investment placing upward pressure on rents while limiting choice for renters.”
Lower demand has not fixed the supply problem
Zoopla said enquiries per rental home fell to 5.6 in May, well below the peak seen in 2022. But that does not mean landlords are entering an easy market. The portal said a shortage of stock is still supporting rents, especially outside the most expensive locations, because the private rented sector has not seen enough fresh investment.
That matters for investors weighing acquisition plans. A market with slower national rent inflation but structurally weak supply can still offer solid income growth in the right postcodes, particularly where rents remain well below the UK average and tenant affordability is less stretched.
This follows Landlord Knowledge’s report on Propertymark’s May rental tracker, which found affordability pressure still building in parts of the market even where rents were already at record levels. The latest Zoopla figures suggest that pressure is now shifting more clearly toward lower-cost regions where landlords still have room to reprice.
What this means for landlords
- If you’re reviewing rents in cheaper regional markets: there may still be scope for increases, but landlords will need to track local affordability rather than rely on national averages.
- Watch for: cities where rents are already slipping, because that can signal weaker demand or affordability resistance spreading into nearby markets.
- Bottom line: lower headline inflation does not mean rental pressure has gone away – it means growth is becoming more selective and more dependent on supply-starved areas.
Landlords looking for the underlying data can review Zoopla’s rental market report, which sets out the latest national and regional trends.
Editor’s view
Zoopla’s report is a useful reminder that the rental market is not cooling evenly. National averages matter less to landlords than local headroom, and right now that still sits mainly in cheaper areas where supply has failed to recover.
Author: Editorial Team – UK landlord & buy-to-let news, policy, and finance
Published: 11 June 2026
Sources: Zoopla Rental Market Report Q2 2026, Zoopla rental market report page
Related reading: Propertymark: Scotland rents jump 7.7% in May as affordability pressure spreads
