Advertised rents in Greater London rose 9.8% year on year in August 2026, the fourth consecutive monthly rise and the highest growth rate since April 2025, according to data from lettings agent Hello Neighbour.
The figure is up from 8.7% in July, and averaged across June, July and August, advertised rents are running around 8% ahead of the same period a year earlier.
Hello Neighbour said the acceleration does not appear to be driven by a surge in demand. The firm recorded 40 enquiries per property in August, up from 34 in July but below the 47 seen in August 2025 and well down on the 72 and 84 recorded in August 2024 and 2023 respectively.
Instead, the lettings agent is attributing the trend to landlord behaviour changes triggered by the Renters' Rights Act. Since the Act came into force on 1 May 2026, landlords have been barred from accepting offers above the advertised asking price and are limited to one rent increase per year. Tenants also have new rights to challenge any rise. Hello Neighbour said these changes have encouraged landlords to set asking prices higher from the outset.
The four monthly annual growth readings since the Act came into force are 3.7%, 6.4%, 8.7% and 9.8%.
The figures relate to advertised rents on properties currently listed by Hello Neighbour in Greater London, not achieved rents across the full rental market. The firm said achieved rents are also growing but at a somewhat slower pace.
Two other published measures of London rents show lower figures. HomeLet, which records rents agreed on tenancies starting in a given month, had London at 6.0% for July 2026. The ONS Price Index of Private Rents, which covers new and existing tenancies together, put London at 3.0% for the 12 months to July. Hello Neighbour noted the ONS measure lags market changes because rent levels can sit in the index for up to 14 months before they refresh.
The gap between Hello Neighbour's advertised figure and HomeLet's achieved figure was 1.4 percentage points in June and 2.7 percentage points in July. HomeLet's August index had not been published at the time of writing.
Hello Neighbour said affordability remains the key constraint in the London market and expects achieved rents to continue growing more slowly than advertised rents for the rest of 2026.
