New research from Cyborg Finance has found that landlords received their full proposed rent increase in 21 of the 74 rent tribunal cases decided in England in September 2026, or 28.4%.
The other 53 cases (71.6%) ended with a smaller increase than requested, no change, a rent reduction or a struck-out case. The analysis draws on publicly available First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) decisions.
The 74 decisions broke down as follows:
- 21 cases (28.4%) resulted in the full proposed increase
- 29 cases (39.2%) resulted in a partial increase
- 12 cases (16.2%) left the rent unchanged
- 6 cases (8.1%) resulted in a rent reduction
- 6 cases (8.1%) were struck out
In total, 24 cases (32.4%) ended without a recorded rent increase, although strike-outs are not determinations of a new rent. Tribunals awarded a higher rent in 50 cases (67.6%), either in full or in part.
Across the 68 cases with comparable original and determined rent figures, combined monthly rent rose from £93,285 to £99,509. That net increase of 6.7% includes cases where rents were reduced or unchanged. Average monthly rent moved from £1,372 to £1,464, about £92 more per month, or £1,104 a year.
The aggregate increase edged up from 6.3% in August to 6.7% in September, a rise of 0.4 percentage points. The figures describe the analysed tribunal decisions rather than rent increases across the private rented sector as a whole.
“The rent a landlord proposes and the rent a tribunal determines are not always the same,” said Mark Hosker, mortgage adviser at Cyborg Finance. “Landlords should be ready to support proposed rents with comparable local evidence, while tenants should remember that challenging an increase does not guarantee their rent will stay unchanged.”
“Tenants shouldn’t assume challenging a rent increase means their rent will stay the same,” Hosker added. “More than two-thirds of September cases still resulted in an increase, with rents rising 6.7% overall. However, with a challenge potentially delaying higher rent payments by around four months, and nearly three-quarters of landlords failing to secure their full proposed increase, the £47 tribunal fee could prove money well spent.”
Cyborg Finance’s wider tracker puts the average gap between service of a landlord’s rent notice and a tribunal decision at around 91 days, across cases with both dates recorded since May 2026. The date on which any new rent becomes payable depends on the rules and circumstances of the case.
