THE PROPERTY FILTER TAKE
Chestertons' latest quarterly report found a 36% annual rise in landlords raising their asking rents following the introduction of the Renters' Rights Act.
Landlords are pricing compliance risk in upfront - tenants are absorbing that cost before they even make contact with a letting agent.
Consider reviewing your asking price strategy against local void risk and running your numbers through the stress test calculator before adjusting.
More than a third of landlords have raised their asking rents since the Renters' Rights Act came into force, according to Chestertons' latest quarterly report. The firm recorded a 36% annual increase in landlords setting higher initial marketing prices (Chestertons, 2026). For landlords and tenants alike, the numbers signal a clear shift in how the lettings market is responding to new regulation.
Why Landlords Are Moving First on Price
The Renters' Rights Act - which introduced significant changes to tenancy law in England - has changed how many landlords approach initial pricing. Chestertons' data shows more than one in three are now building that risk into asking rents before a tenant is even in place.
This is not irrational. Landlords face new legal obligations under the Act. For those unsure how these changes affect yield (annual rental income as a percentage of property value), raising the asking rent is the most direct lever available. If you are working through whether your portfolio still stacks up, our stress test calculator can help you model the numbers.
The risk is overpricing. A higher asking rent that sits empty costs more than a competitive rent that lets quickly. Void risk (lost income from an empty property) remains the landlord's sharpest problem.
What Your Tenants Are Thinking
Tenants are meeting higher headline prices before they even enquire. In many areas, demand already outstrips supply. Some renters will absorb the increase. Others will not.
Lower-income tenants and those relying on Local Housing Allowance (LHA - the government benefit that contributes towards rent) face the sharpest pressure. Higher asking prices can push them out of previously affordable areas entirely. Our LHA rates map shows how far that gap is widening across different regions.
The wider picture is a market under structural pressure from legislative change. Long-term investment strategy matters more than ever when the rules of the landlord-tenant relationship are shifting. Our free resources hub covers the key tools to stay ahead of it.
Key takeaways
- Chestertons recorded a 36% annual increase in landlords raising asking rents following the Renters' Rights Act (Chestertons, 2026). - Landlords pricing compliance risk into initial marketing must weigh yield gains against the cost of void periods. - Tenants - particularly those on LHA - face higher rents at the point of listing, before a tenancy is even agreed.
More than a third of landlords have raised their asking rents since the Renters' Rights Act came into force, according to Chestertons' latest quarterly report. The firm recorded a 36% annual increase in landlords setting higher initial marketing prices (Chestertons, 2026). For landlords and tenants alike, the numbers signal a clear shift in how the lettings market is responding to new regulation.
Why Landlords Are Moving First on Price
The Renters' Rights Act - which introduced significant changes to tenancy law in England - has changed how many landlords approach initial pricing. Chestertons' data shows more than one in three are now building that risk into asking rents before a tenant is even in place.
This is not irrational. Landlords face new legal obligations under the Act. For those unsure how these changes affect yield (annual rental income as a percentage of property value), raising the asking rent is the most direct lever available. If you are working through whether your portfolio still stacks up, our stress test calculator can help you model the numbers.
The risk is overpricing. A higher asking rent that sits empty costs more than a competitive rent that lets quickly. Void risk (lost income from an empty property) remains the landlord's sharpest problem.
What Your Tenants Are Thinking
Tenants are meeting higher headline prices before they even enquire. In many areas, demand already outstrips supply. Some renters will absorb the increase. Others will not.
Lower-income tenants and those relying on Local Housing Allowance (LHA - the government benefit that contributes towards rent) face the sharpest pressure. Higher asking prices can push them out of previously affordable areas entirely. Our LHA rates map shows how far that gap is widening across different regions.
The wider picture is a market under structural pressure from legislative change. Long-term investment strategy matters more than ever when the rules of the landlord-tenant relationship are shifting. Our free resources hub covers the key tools to stay ahead of it.
Key takeaways
- Chestertons recorded a 36% annual increase in landlords raising asking rents following the Renters' Rights Act (Chestertons, 2026). - Landlords pricing compliance risk into initial marketing must weigh yield gains against the cost of void periods. - Tenants - particularly those on LHA - face higher rents at the point of listing, before a tenancy is even agreed.
