UK private rent inflation accelerated to 3.8% in August 2026

Average UK monthly private rent rose by 3.8% in the 12 months to August 2026, to £1,400, the Office for National Statistics said in its private rent and house prices bulletin published on 16 September 2026¹. That is up from 3.7% in the 12 months to July 2026 and is the highest annual rate since December 2025¹. The ONS said the rise was mainly caused by an increase in London's annual inflation rate, to its highest since October 2025¹. The August figure is a provisional estimate and will be revised under the ONS's two-month revision policy¹.

Rents rose in every nation, though at different rates. Northern Ireland figures run two months behind the rest of the UK¹.

Source: ONS, private rent and house prices, September 2026¹

Within England, the North East and North West had the highest annual rent inflation, both at 5.8%, while the South East had the lowest, at 3.0%¹. London's annual rate rose to 3.5%, from 3.0% in the 12 months to July 2026¹. Average rent was highest in London at £2,332 and lowest in the North East at £788¹. At local level, Kensington and Chelsea had the highest average monthly rent at £3,690 and Dumfries and Galloway the lowest at £558; excluding London, Oxford had the highest at £1,963¹.

The ONS advises caution when comparing Scotland and Northern Ireland estimates with other UK countries because of differences in data collection¹. Northern Ireland rent data cover advertised new lets, and Scotland's data have historically been predominantly advertised new lets¹. Measures relating to in-tenancy rent increases were in place in Scotland from September 2022 to March 2025¹. The ONS also notes that PIPR data became official statistics on 20 May 2026 and are no longer considered to be in development¹.

Aimee North, the ONS head of housing market indices, said:

Separately, average UK house prices rose by 1.4% to £273,000 in the 12 months to July 2026, down from 1.5% in the 12 months to June 2026¹. The ONS said the UK annual rate slowed for the third consecutive month, because of a sharp slowing in the South West, with London and the West Midlands also contributing¹. Average house prices were £293,000 in England (1.1%), £215,000 in Wales (2.6%) and £196,000 in Scotland (2.3%)¹. Northern Ireland's average was £202,000 in the second quarter of 2026, up 9.2% annually, which the ONS linked to lower price growth in the same quarter of 2025 coinciding with stamp duty changes there from 1 April 2025¹. London house prices fell by 3.3% annually, the eleventh consecutive month of annual falls, leaving the average at £569,000, £19,000 below the recent peak in July 2025¹.

The Standard also reported that Consumer Prices Index inflation increased to 3.1% in August, up from 2.9% in July².

Why it matters for households

For tenants, the August figures describe what has already happened to rents rather than what will happen next. The UK average of £1,400 is £52 higher than a year earlier¹. The gap between nations is wide: Wales recorded the fastest annual growth of the four at 4.3%, while Scotland recorded 1.1%¹. Because the ONS cautions that Scottish and Northern Irish data are collected differently, and Northern Ireland's latest figure covers June rather than August, the four numbers are not directly comparable¹.

Rent inflation is one input into the Household Costs Index, which tracks how inflation differs between household types, and the ONS publishes the underlying rent series through its private rents data. House price growth affects buyers and owners rather than tenants, and the ONS's house price index material covers that series separately. Both sit within the site's rates and economy coverage.

The ONS notes that its UK rent estimates for the latest two months, and house price estimates for the latest 12 months, are provisional and subject to revision¹. House price first estimates are based on sales volumes reflecting around 50% of all sales in Great Britain in July 2026¹.

What happens next

The next private rent and house prices bulletin is due on 21 October 2026¹. The ONS has not reported any further changes to the PIPR or HPI methodologies in this release beyond those already made, including the HPI imputation improvement for Great Britain introduced on 20 August 2025¹.