Rental inflation is not moving evenly across the country. Stronger growth in the North East and weaker movement in London show how affordability, supply and migration patterns can reshape local rental markets.
Northern markets may benefit from lower starting rents, affordability migration and improving urban demand. London remains important, but high rent levels limit further headroom.
This creates a more complex investment picture. High rental growth is attractive, but it must be tested against local incomes and tenant sustainability.
The strongest opportunities are likely to sit where rent growth is supported by genuine household demand, not only by scarcity.
Regional rental analysis now needs to go deeper than headline percentages. The key question is whether local tenants can keep absorbing the new rent level.