With the Renters’ Rights Act becoming law on 1st May 2026, most fixed-term tenancies in England have now become periodic – or rolling tenancies. Both landlords and tenants can serve notice to end a contract on a number of grounds, while landlords can increase rents a maximum of once per year.
According to Hamptons’ analysis of Connells Group data, early evidence from the first month of the new system suggests that fewer sitting tenants saw their rent rise. In May, the number of tenants who saw their rent increase was 23% lower than in May 2025, and 16% below the five-year May (2021-2025) average.
While this partly reflects a backdrop of slower rental growth, falls suggests landlords have, at least initially, been less likely to increase rents than under the previous system where changes predominantly coincided with a tenant signing a new contract.
While the number of rent increases may rise in future months as landlords adjust to the new system, there is limited evidence to suggest that landlords pushed through rent increases in advance of 1 May.
The number of rent increases between January and April 2026 was 3% lower than in the same period of 2025, indicating that behaviour remained broadly consistent in the run-up to implementation.
Fewer increases in rents for tenants…
If the number of rent increases recorded in May 2026 were repeated for the rest of the year, we estimate that 31% of tenants would see their rent rise when landlords are able to do so (i.e. after a 12-month period).
This marks a clear decline from 40% over the 12 months to May 2025, and from a peak of 50% in the 12 months to January 2024, when rents on newly agreed rentals were rising at double-digit pace.
This change reflects more than just a cooling market. It points to a structural shift in how rents are adjusted. Under the previous system, rents were often reviewed when a tenancy renewed, allowing for more frequent, incremental increases. Under the new rules, landlords look more likely to space out increases over longer periods.
Evidence from Scotland — where periodic tenancies have been in place since 2017, alongside more recent rent controls — suggests this tends to result in fewer increases overall, but larger adjustments when they do occur.
…but bigger rises when they come
Among those tenants who did see their rent change, the average annual increase in May was 5.4%. This was unchanged from April and slightly below the 5.5% recorded in May 2025.
However, the average size of increases has eased from 7.3% when rental growth peaked, representing both softer rental growth and the fact that fewer landlords are choosing to increase the rent.
These figures also remain higher than the increases recorded in new lets (+1.1% YoY in May). This is because increases for existing tenants often reflect a catch-up to market levels, particularly when rents have not been adjusted for some time and have fallen below prevailing rates.
Scotland suggests the direction of travel
Where landlords have increased rents, Scotland has consistently seen the largest rises, with an average increase of 7.7% in May.
Scotland has had periodic tenancies since 2017, and rent increases were typically capped at 3% per year until April 2024, when this cap was lifted. The sharp increases in Scottish rents seen during 2024 and 2025 reflected rents returning to market levels after being capped.
However, since then, rent increases have increasingly reflected landlords making fewer, but larger adjustments to rents. This may offer an early indication of how the market in England evolves under the Renters’ Rights Act.
New let rental growth remains subdued
In the first month following the Renters’ Rights Act becoming law in England, rental growth for tenants moving into a new home remains at relatively low levels.
The average price of a newly agreed let in Great Britain rose 1.1% over the year to May 2025, down from 1.2% April. This leaves the average rent paid by a tenant moving into a property at £1,382 per month across Great Britain.
Regionally, the average rent in the South East of England reached £1,500 per month in May, up 2.0% on the same period last year. This is the first time any region outside London has seen rents reach the £1,500 per month mark.
London rents, by comparison, currently stand at £2,294 pcm, having last been at £1,500 per month in June 2012.
While rental growth on newly agreed lets remains cool by recent standards, landlords appear to be taking a more cautious approach when selecting new tenants.
Many are showing a willingness to wait for the right tenant rather than accept the first offer, which has reduced the number of homes let and helped to keep a lid on rental growth for new tenants.
