London rents drop £65 a month while buy-to-let investors head north

London is driving the rental slowdown, with common rents falling by 2.7 per cent yearly or £65 per 30 days, in keeping with a report by Hamptons.

Month-to-month rents on new lets within the capital in September are £2,332 on common.

Throughout Britain, the common hire for a newly-let house fell by 0.3 per cent over the 12 months to September — down £4 per 30 days from £1,402 to £1,398, Hamptons mentioned.

It mentioned the autumn marks a “notable shift” from annual development of 4.2 per cent recorded a 12 months earlier.

In contrast, common rents throughout Britain for renewed contracts elevated by 4.6 per cent over the earlier 12 months.

The common renewal hire was £1,307 per 30 days, surpassing the £1,300 per 30 days mark for the primary time.

The North East of England was the hotspot for buy-to-let buyers within the third quarter of this 12 months, in keeping with the Hamptons information.

Investor exercise is more and more concentrated in northern England, the place yields are larger and stamp responsibility prices are decrease.

The Hamptons report estimated that 28.4 per cent of properties offered within the North East have been purchased by a landlord within the third quarter of 2025, in contrast with eight per cent in London, 7.1 per cent in Scotland and 6.9 per cent in Wales.

Aneisha Beveridge, head of analysis at Hamptons, mentioned: “Landlord purchases haven’t collapsed within the face of upper taxes and tighter regulation — however they’ve shifted.

“New landlords have more and more grow to be an endangered species in markets throughout southern England, the place huge stamp responsibility payments and flatlining costs have nudged buyers northwards.

“However in locations just like the North East, landlord exercise stays near all-time highs, displaying that the buy-to-let market is adapting moderately than retreating.”

The Hamptons lettings index makes use of information from the Connells Group to trace adjustments to the price of renting.

The index is predicated on achieved moderately than marketed rents.