Britain’s most competitive summer rental hotspots

New analysis from the UK’s largest property platform Rightmove has revealed Britain’s most competitive rental hotspots during July and August, typically the busiest months of the year for the rental market.

Wallasey and Birkenhead in Merseyside were Britain’s joint most competitive rental markets, with each available rental property attracting an average of 30 enquiries from prospective tenants.

Carlisle ranked third, with an average of 29 enquiries per available property, while Glasgow and East Kilbride completed the top five.

The findings highlight how intense competition for rental homes remains across parts of Great Britain, even as rental supply and demand conditions continue to rebalance compared with the record highs seen in previous years.

While average advertised rents remain at record levels nationally, (current national average rent £1,580 per calendar month), the pace of rent growth has continued to slow, as competition has eased and improving supply gives tenants more choice than during the pandemic-era peak.

Across Great Britain, rental properties attracted an average of 11 enquiries each during July and August, typically the busiest months of the year for the rental market.

While this is lower than the 12 enquiries recorded during the same period last year and significantly below the peak of 28 in July and August 2022, it remains above the pre-pandemic average of eight enquiries per property during the summer months.

An enquiry is measured by a prospective tenant phoning or emailing a letting agent to request to view a property to rent. Rightmove’s analysis ranked 1,000 locations across Great Britain and ranked them by the number of enquiries each available rental listing received.

Three of the six most competitive rental hotspots were on the Wirral, while six of the top ten were located in the North West. Scotland also featured strongly, with Glasgow and East Kilbride both appearing in the top five.

Scotland recorded the highest average level of rental competition across Great Britain, with properties receiving an average of 19 enquiries each during July and August. The North West followed with an average of 16 enquiries per property.

Britain’s busiest summer rental hotspots

Location
Area
Average rent PCM
Enquiries per available listing
Birkenhead, Wirral, Merseyside
North West
£874
30
Wallasey, Wirral Merseyside
North West
£975
30
Carlisle, Cumbria
North West
£913
29
Glasgow
Scotland
£1,181
28
East Kilbride, Glasgow
Scotland
£1,049
27
Prenton, Wirral, Merseyside
North West
£1,089
27
Kingswood, Bristol
South West
£1,542
25
Chorlton Cum Hardy, Manchester, Greater Manchester
North West
£1,610
22
Morecambe, Lancashire
North West
£887
22
Salisbury, Wiltshire
South West
£1,371
21

Average rental competition across Great Britain

Location
Average enquiries per available rental property
Scotland
19
North West
16
South West
12
West Midlands
12
Yorkshire and The Humber
12
North East
11
Great Britain
11
Wales
11
East of England
10
East Midlands
9
London
9
South East
9

Colleen Babcock, Rightmove’s property expert, said: “July and August are typically the busiest months of the year for the rental market, and our analysis shows that competition remains particularly strong in some parts of Great Britain. While rental supply has rebalanced compared with previous years, there are still locations where each available home attracts high numbers of enquiries from prospective tenants.

“The North West features particularly prominently in our findings, accounting for six of the ten most competitive locations, while Scotland recorded the highest average level of competition anywhere in Great Britain.

“For renters, the findings are a reminder that competition can still be strong in many areas, despite the improvement in supply in recent years. Starting a search early and being ready with the information an agent or landlord may need can help put renters in the best possible position when a suitable property becomes available.”