Private landlords in the UK benefitted from an additional 7.4% in monthly rental income this year. That’s the findings from the government’s Office of National Statistics, which records the average UK monthly private rent at £1,335. The increase, of 7.4% was a fall from the previous year, which saw rents increase by 7.7% between April 2023 and April 2024.

It means the typical monthly rental in England now costs £1,390. In Wales it’s £999 and in Scotland, £795.

When it comes to geographical location, the biggest increase in private rents was in the North East (a jump of 9.4%), the lowest was in Yorkshire and The Humber at 4%.

Property prices rise by over 6%

But it wasn’t just rental income that saw a rise in the government’s latest statistics. Homeowners also saw the value of their property go up. That’s because the typical UK house rose in value by 6.4% to £271,000, in the 12 months to March 2025. The rise was highest in England, at 6.7%, bringing the average property there to around £296,000. In Wales, the value of property rose by 3.6% to £208,000 and in Scotland, house prices jumped 4.6% to £186,000.

But it’s not all plain sailing for the property market, according to analysts. They point to a jump in inflation to 3.5% in April, which could have a detrimental effect to people’s finances and hit the property market hard. That’s because it means mortgage rates won’t fall as earlier predicted, but will remain so until inflation is under control.

Former RICS boss warns of a slowdown in property market

Former RICS chairman Jeremy Leaf said: “At first glance, the ONS figures demonstrate market resilience with activity shrugging off recent economic uncertainties at home and abroad. However, on the ground we are seeing a different story.”

That story is that buyers and sellers are holding off to see what the economy will do over the next few months, meaning the property market is expected to slow down over summer. 

The ‘Trump effect’ isn’t just helping ‘leftish’ politicians get elected in the west, it seems. 

Figures revealed this week from Rightmove show a desire by Americans to flee the Republican’s high tariffs and other ‘draconian’ measures is also affecting the UK property market.

The popular property portal has seen a 20% increase in American interest for UK property since Trump was elected. It’s the highest increase in eight years.

Edinburgh proves most popular for US property buyers

The majority of Americans are looking to buy in Scotland, and the capital city Edinburgh, in particular. Second in popularity is Westminster in London, with Camden third. Scotland’s biggest city in terms of population – Glasgow – is also proving popular, coming in fourth most appealing for US buyers.

The desire for relocation to Scotland may be down to the lower prices (the average property is around £100,000 cheaper north of the border than in the South) or a desire to ‘live where our forebears once did.’

A spokesman for Rightmove says their statistics show that just over one third of American who enquire about property in the UK are looking to relocate to the UK. That’s because they are looking at three or four-bedroom homes. Around 47% of enquiries are for one or two-bedroom properties, which are more suitable for second homes.

“President Trump’s tariff announcements have led to more economic uncertainty globally, and we’re starting to see some of the effects of this on the UK property market,” said Rightmove’s Colleen Babcock.

“Whether it’s because the UK is seen as a more stable investment opportunity, or whether some buyers are considering a permanent move across the Atlantic, we’re seeing an increase in enquiries from the US.”

But the UK isn’t proving popular with billionaires. The Times super-rich list recently reported the biggest fall in billionaires yet – a drop from 165 to 156 over the past 12 months. Last month the Labour party abolished the non-dom tax status for property owners whose permanent home wasn’t in the UK. 

As predicted, the value of UK property fell last month.

The reason was the highly inflated figure for March after would-be buyers rushed to make the most of the Stamp Duty discounts in England and Northern Ireland.

The Nationwide put the average property at £270,752 for April. That was a drop of 0.6% on March’s figure. It brought the year-on-year price increase down from 3.9% in March to 3.4% for April. 

Possibility of more Bank of England base rate cuts 

That hasn’t put analysts off predicting a busy summer though, especially with the possibility of several Bank of England base rate falls this year. The 0.25 drop yesterday, bringing the current figure to 4.25%, is certainly encouraging. That’s because the likelihood is that it bring down mortgage interest rates, ensuring property is more affordable for a larger part of the population.

And, even though the economic situation looks uncertain in America, inflation in the UK dropped to 2.6% in March. The employment situation is stable and wages are rising, putting more money in people’s pockets.

Confidence in property market growing says Rightmove

Rightmove figures, published today, certainly seem to indicate a flourishing property market. New listings on the portal had increased by 9% compared to the same time the previous year. Sales, too, were up, this time by 7%. In fact, listings have been at a 10-year high since April this year. 

When there’s help from the Bank of Mum and Dad

Meanwhile, a report by UK Finance revealed first time buyers who got help from family managed to put down deposits of around £225,000. Those who were ‘unassisted’ put down a lower amount of around £150,000. 

First time buyers who were helped by family tended to buy at around age 30 and had a household income of approximately £56,000. This compared to age 32, with a household income of £65,000 for the other group.

Private rental properties lying empty for more than six months could be taken over by the local authority. 

At least, that could be the case in one London borough where council official have asked for a fast-track Empty Dwelling Management Order (EDMO). 

Under the current Housing Act legislation, which was introduced in 2004, councils are permitted to apply for possession of an empty private rental property after a period of two years. 

Westminster Council targets wealthy overseas investors

But Westminster Council, which states it has more than 1500 private rental properties lying empty, says that timeframe is too long and is urging the government to update their policy. The majority of empty homes in the district belong to wealthy overseas buyers. 

The government, for its part, is keen to support local authorities looking to free up empty properties for rent. As the law currently sits, councils who want to repossess a property can apply to a Residential Property Tribunal after it has been vacant for at least two years. 

New Build Homes figures ‘up’ on previous year

Meanwhile, the government’s aim to build new homes to help local authority housing supplies, is ploughing ahead. Around 31,770 properties were completed between October and December 2024. 

That was up 32% on the same time the previous year. It was, however, lower than the previous quarter (July to September) when 14% more (37,070) homes were delivered. The pledge of the current Labour government is to build 1.5m homes by 2030.

To achieve this, Housing secretary Angela Raynor intends to scrap a number of statutory consultations for large developments. This means new road, rail, energy and other infrastructure projects, could be completed quicker. 

Referring to the Planning and Infrastructure Bill, which is currently under consideration by Parliament, the deputy prime minister said: “Critical national infrastructure is key to Britain’s future and security – so we can’t afford to have projects held up by tiresome requirements and uncertainty, caused by a system that is not working for communities or developers and holding back our true potential.” 

Annual private rents in the UK rose by 7.7% in March.

That’s according to data from the government’s Price Index of Private Rents (PIPR). It’s a drop of 0.4% from February, with the biggest rise in rental inflation in the North East at 9.4%. It’s the first time in two years that the highest rental inflation rise wasn’t in London, which saw a 9.1% jump. Landlords in Yorkshire and The Humber saw the lowest annual rental inflation, at 4.6%.

England has highest private rental inflation

Country-wide, average rents rose by 7.8% to £1,386 in England (an increase of £101 compared to a year earlier). The jump was 8.9% in Wales to £792 and 5.7% in Scotland to £1,001. Figures to January 2025 saw rents in Northern Ireland increase by 8.2% to £838. 

In terms of individual local authorities, the highest average rent in the UK was in London’s Kensington and Chelsea where tenants were paying around £3,639. The lowest rent was in Dumfries in Galloway in Scotland, at £528. The highest average rent outside the capital was in Elmbridge in the South East, with a cost of £1,893.

Cost of average property up more than 5%

The cost of the average UK property came in at £268,000. This was an increase of 5.4% and an annual monthly jump of 0.6%. In England the average property is now priced at £292,000, This compares to £207,000 in Wales and £186,000 in Scotland.

Property being ‘snapped up’ in 19 days

Meanwhile, the end of the Stamp Duty holiday hasn’t put paid to the British public’s appetite for moving home if Zoopla’s latest report is anything to go by. 

The portal points out that in Waltham Forest in North East London, properties are selling within 19 days of being on the market. And the UK average isn’t bad either – with most properties selling within around 36 days. Property in some of the larger cities, such as Manchester, Gateshead, and Carlisle are also selling fast – mostly within 32 days.

UK House Prices may be on the rise, but the market is slowly and surely becoming a buyers one.

This week’s Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (Rics) survey found that buyer demand had fallen by 14% last month. That compared to a drop of just 1% in January. Changes to stamp duty due to come in on April 1 will ensure that demand falls even further according to many property analysts. At that point, buyers will have to pay duty on properties at more than £125,000, compared to a minimum of £250,000. 

Buyers still prefer to ‘watch and wait’

The Bank of England may have cut interest rates, but the ongoing cost of living crisis means many house hunters need the Base Rate to drop even further before they’ll venture into new homes territory. At the same time worldwide economic tensions as a result of US tariffs and the continued Ukraine war, are forcing many would-be buyers to wait until further down the line for a more ‘stable’ situation.

On the plus side for buyers more housing stock is entering the market, providing more choice and a less competitive market all round. 

Simon Rubinson, Chief Economist for the surveyors professional body, confirmed that it appeared the market was losing momentum, but he wasn’t all doom and gloom.

“Looking beyond the next few months, sales activity is seen as likely to resume an upward trend with prices also moving higher,” he added.

Property prices are indeed expected to rise by the end of the year. 

Lettings market remains stagnant but to pick up soon

The same can’t be said for the lettings market though, where tenant demand continues to lie flat. In February it was down 4%. Landlord instructions are down too – by 22% for last month. Admittedly it’s not the most popular time for rentals. In fact, 34% of surveyors said they expected rental prices to rise by the start of the summer.

One of the UK’s biggest mortgage lenders, HSBC, has reduced its mortgage interest rate by 0.25. This brings its standard variable rate down to 6.74% – the biggest drop in two years and a sign that the market may begin to pick up faster again.

The news comes in the light of the recent Halifax report which shows the average property price fell by 0.1% last month, bringing the typical value of a house in the UK to £298,602.

The drop surprised many analysts in the sector who were anticipating an even bigger rise in property. This was mainly down to an increase in the number of buyers trying to push through their house purchase prior to the Stamp Duty deadline on March 31. It also surprised analysts at Nationwide, whose figures have recorded six monthly property price increases in a row, including a rise of 0.4% for February.

Prices still rising year-on-year

Despite the monthly drop, Halifax reported a 2.9% increase for property prices year-on-year.

The building society’s head of mortgages, Amanda Bryden acknowledged there had been a last-minute rush on buying, but said that momentum had already faded by the time February had come around according to their figures. This, she added, was usually down to the time it typically took for a property transaction to go through.

HSBC had dropped its mortgage interest rate after the Bank of England introduced a rate cut of 0.25% last month. The latter is also expected to carry out two further interest rate cuts of 0.25% by the end of the year. 

Net mortgage Lending increases 

Meanwhile, figures from the Bank this week shows net mortgage lending in January was the highest its been since September 2022.

In terms of regional variations from the Halifax report, house prices in Scotland had increased by 3.8 per cent in February, with the average property now worth £213,014. In Northern Ireland homeowners saw a 5.9% increase, to £205,784 for a typical property there.