The UK rental market continues to demonstrate strong rental values, with average rents reaching another record high during August 2026.

According to the latest HomeLet Rental Index, the average rent agreed for a new tenancy across the UK reached £1,382 per month, up from £1,369 in July and representing annual growth of 4.1%.

When Greater London is excluded, the average rent across the rest of the UK reached £1,179 per month, demonstrating that rental growth is certainly not confined to the capital.

For landlords, continued rental growth can be welcome news. However, higher rents also bring increased financial exposure if a tenancy goes wrong.

With tenants now committing a significant proportion of their household income towards their rent, setting the right rental value, carrying out comprehensive referencing and protecting that rental income has arguably never been more important.

What is happening in the East of England?

The figures are particularly relevant to landlords across Essex and Suffolk.

HomeLet's August figures showed the average rent for a new tenancy in the East of England reaching £1,348 per month.

This represented:

• a 1.1% increase in a single month
• a 3.1% increase compared with the previous year
• approximately 34.2% of tenant income being spent on rent

While regional statistics provide a useful indication of the direction of the market, there can be significant differences between individual towns, property types and even neighbouring areas.

A three-bedroom family home in Colchester, for example, may experience very different demand from an apartment in Sudbury, a village property around Kelvedon or a coastal home.

That is why landlords should avoid simply applying a national or regional percentage increase to their existing rent.

A professional rental review should consider current comparable evidence, recently agreed tenancies, the condition of the property and genuine tenant demand within the local market.

Tenant affordability is increasingly important

One of the most significant issues highlighted by the latest figures is affordability.

HomeLet's data indicates that tenants taking new tenancies are now spending around 32% of their income on rent nationally, with the proportion substantially higher in London.

For landlords, this is an important consideration.

Achieving the highest possible rent on paper is not necessarily the same as achieving the best financial outcome.

A reliable tenant who looks after the property, pays their rent on time and remains for the longer term has considerable value.

An excessive rent increase that causes a good tenant to leave could result in:

• a period without rental income
• additional marketing and letting costs
• cleaning or preparation works
• referencing a replacement tenant
• increased administration
• uncertainty over the new tenancy.

The aim should therefore be to achieve a fair and sustainable market rent, rather than simply chasing the highest advertised figure.

Higher rents mean protecting your rental income is more important than ever

There is another consequence of rents reaching record levels that landlords should carefully consider.

The financial impact when a tenant stops paying rent is now considerably greater.

At a monthly rent of £1,350, three months of unpaid rent represents more than £4,000 of lost income.

Six months of arrears would exceed £8,000 – before taking into account any legal expenses, court costs or other expenditure associated with recovering possession of the property.

For a landlord with mortgage payments, insurance, maintenance costs and other financial commitments, the loss of several months' rent can quickly become extremely serious.

Recent possession data has also demonstrated that where tenancies do break down, regaining possession through the courts can take a considerable amount of time.

This is precisely why we believe Rent & Legal Protection should now be seriously considered by every landlord.

Boydens Rent & Legal Protection

At Boydens, we have deliberately sought to provide landlords with a Rent & Legal Protection product that we consider to be one of the strongest and most comprehensive options available in the market.

The principle is simple: while comprehensive referencing helps reduce the chances of a tenancy going wrong, no referencing process can predict what might happen several months or years into a tenancy.

A tenant could:

• lose their employment
• experience a relationship breakdown
• suffer an unexpected change in financial circumstances
• simply stop paying their rent
• breach the terms of their tenancy.

A tenant who comfortably passed referencing at the beginning of a tenancy can therefore still subsequently experience financial difficulty.

Boydens' Rent & Legal Protection is designed to provide landlords with additional financial security should this happen, combining protection against qualifying rent arrears with legal support and cover where possession proceedings become necessary, subject of course to the policy terms, conditions and eligibility requirements.

For many landlords, this protection is becoming increasingly important.

If a property generates £1,300, £1,500 or £2,000 per month, the landlord is effectively placing a significant annual income stream into the hands of their tenant.

At £1,500 per month, for example, the annual rent is £18,000.

Most landlords would insure the building itself against significant financial loss. We believe there is an equally strong argument for considering protection for the income the property generates.

Referencing and rent protection should work together

Rent guarantee insurance should not be viewed as a substitute for good tenant selection.

The two should work together.

At Boydens, careful referencing helps establish whether an applicant can reasonably afford the tenancy and identify potential areas of concern before the tenancy begins.

Rent & Legal Protection then provides landlords with an additional level of security should circumstances subsequently change.

For landlords who rely upon their rental income to meet mortgage payments or supplement their household income, that additional protection can be particularly valuable.

Good referencing reduces the risk. Rent protection helps protect you against the financial consequences if that risk becomes a reality.

Rent increases have changed under the Renters' Rights Act

Landlords should also remember that the procedure for increasing rent changed significantly following the implementation of the Renters' Rights Act reforms on 1 May 2026.

For assured periodic tenancies, landlords can generally only increase the rent once within a 12-month period and should ensure that any proposed increase reflects the property's genuine open-market rental value.

The statutory rent increase procedure must be followed, including serving the appropriate prescribed notice and giving the tenant the required notice period.

Tenants also have the ability to challenge a proposed increase at the First-tier Tribunal where they believe the proposed rent exceeds the rent that could reasonably be achieved on the open market.

This makes professional rental advice and good comparable evidence considerably more important.

Setting the right rent is now more important than ever

Rental value can be affected by many factors, including:

• property condition and presentation
• location
• property type
• number of bedrooms
• parking
• outside space
• energy efficiency
• local supply
• current tenant demand
• recently agreed comparable rents.

There is also an important difference between an asking rent advertised online and the rental value that tenants are genuinely prepared and financially able to pay.

At Boydens, our teams work within the Essex and Suffolk rental markets every day.

This allows us to advise landlords based not simply on advertised properties, but on the level of rents actually being agreed, the number of applicants looking for particular types of property and changing demand within individual locations.

When did you last review your rental property?

With rental values continuing to change, now could be an ideal opportunity to establish whether your property is achieving the correct rent – and whether your rental income is adequately protected.

Boydens can provide landlords with a free, no-obligation rental appraisal, including advice on:

• the current rental value of your property
• comparable properties recently let
• the correct procedure for increasing the rent
• tenancy and Renters' Rights Act compliance
• tenant referencing
• Boydens Rent & Legal Protection
• fully managed and rent collection services.

Protect the property – and protect the income it generates

If you are receiving £1,000, £1,500 or even £2,000 or more every month from your investment property, could you comfortably absorb several months without that income?

If the answer is no, now is the time to consider whether Rent & Legal Protection should form part of your overall approach to managing your investment.

Speak to your local Boydens team today for a free rental review and to find out more about our comprehensive Rent & Legal Protection.

We can review your current rent, discuss your existing tenancy arrangements and explain how our Rent & Legal Protection could provide greater financial security should the unexpected happen.

Contact Boydens today to arrange your free landlord rental, compliance and rent protection review.

Rent & Legal Protection is subject to eligibility, policy terms, conditions and exclusions. Full details are available on request.