The average private rents in September were 4.6% higher than a year earlier at £968 a month, says Zoopla.
Rents across the UK are rising at the fastest pace since 2008 as strong demand outstrips supply, according the property website Zoopla.
Private sector rents in September were 4.6% higher than a year earlier at £968 a month on average, marking the strongest growth in 13 years, Zoopla found.
Excluding London, rents across the UK were up by 6% annually, a figure that Zoopla said was a 14-year high.
Rents in the south-west of England were up by 9% annually, making it the region registering the fastest rental growth in the third quarter of 2021.
And rents in Purbeck in Dorset were up by 16.2% annually, making it the location with the highest rate of rental growth.
Zoopla said demand was continuing to outstrip supply and putting an upward pressure on rents.
Rental growth is also partly because of the popularity of properties in higher price bands, reflecting an ongoing search for space during the coronavirus pandemic.
Rents in London are also starting to climb as people return to offices, with annual price growth of 1.6% recorded in the latest report, compared with falls of nearly 10% at the start of the year.
Annual growth in rental prices stood at 2.7% in Scotland (averaging 627 a month), 5.8% in Northern Ireland (633 a month typically) and 7.7% in Wales (660 a month).
Grainne Gilmore, the head of research at Zoopla, said: “The swing back of demand into city centres, including London, has underpinned another rise in rents in quarter three, especially as the supply of rental property remains tight.”
She added: “Meanwhile, just as in the sales market, there is still a cohort of renters looking for properties offering more space, or a more rural or coastal location.”
Rents to Rise Yet Again in 2022 Forecasts Zoopla
The long term undersupply of rental properties across the country is expected to support rental growth into 2022, says Zoopla.
In addition, the supply shortage coupled with the strength of the employment market which, despite the pandemic, is set to remain robust, will in turn support demand and sustain rental growth.
The portal says the level of rental demand might ease in the near term in line with seasonal trends, but demand levels will remain higher than usual, especially in city centres, where there is an element of pent-up demand being released.
On the supply side, rental stock will remain tight, amid lower levels of investment into the sector by landlords, and this will underpin rental pricing.
There is more leeway for stronger rental growth in areas of the country where rents are relatively more affordable, suggesting that rents could rise above earnings outside of the south of England, supporting rental growth across the UK excluding London at 6.0 per cent in 2021 and 4.0 per cent in 2022.
Meanwhile, London rental growth is expected to pick up to 3.5 per cent with rents ultimately exceeding pre-pandemic levels.
Gráinne Gilmore, Head of Research, Zoopla, comments: “The swing back of demand into city centres, including London, has underpinned another rise in rents in Q3, especially as the supply of rental property remains tight.
“Households looking for the flexibility of rental accomodation, especially students and city workers, are back in the market after consecutive lockdowns affected demand levels in major cities.
“Meanwhile, just as in the sales market, there is still a cohort of renters looking for properties offering more space, or a more rural or coastal location.”