Welcome to Rental Pulse, our monthly snapshot of how the UK rental market is evolving. November 2025 is a supply-constrained market that’s letting homes faster than ever – and the Renters’ Rights Act reforms are now firmly on the horizon for 2026.
Market snapshot: November 2025
The latest market data shows a tight, fast-moving market:
- Average UK rent reached around £1,295 a month (Rightmove, November 2025).
- New listings were down about 28% year-on-year, while tenant demand stayed roughly 18% above pre-pandemic levels.
- Time to let fell to around 18 days as tenants moved quickly in a constrained market.
- Annual rent growth ran at about 5.4% (ONS, October 2025), with stock down roughly 12% (Zoopla, Q3 2025).
Sources: Rightmove Rental Price Tracker; ONS Index of Private Housing Rental Prices; Zoopla, Q3 2025.
The headline: scarcity is driving speed. With far fewer listings, well-presented and professionally managed homes are attracting serious tenants who move fast.
November performance
| Metric | LettingaProperty (Nov 2025) | Market average |
|---|---|---|
| Time to let | 5 days | ~18 days |
| Time to first viewing request | 24 hours | – |
| Viewing requests per listing | 8 | – |
| Application → referencing | 9 hours | – |
| Referencing time | 3 days | – |
| Time to signed contract | 22 hours | – |
Legislative watch: the Renters’ Rights Act
The biggest shift in rental legislation for decades, the Renters’ Rights Act 2025 received Royal Assent in 2025, with its main reforms commencing on 1 May 2026 in England. What it means:
- Section 21 “no-fault” evictions are abolished – possession moves to the Section 8 grounds.
- Periodic (rolling) tenancies become the default, replacing fixed-term ASTs.
- Rent increases are limited to once a year, with proper notice.
- The Decent Homes Standard and Awaab’s Law are extended to private rentals.
- Enforcement is stronger – a new ombudsman, rent repayment orders and penalties for non-compliance.
A note on territory: these changes apply to England. Wales has operated a similar model since the Renting Homes (Wales) Act came into force in December 2022, and Scotland ended no-fault evictions back in 2017 under the Private Residential Tenancy. Our full Renters’ Rights Act guide covers the detail and the later-phase dates.
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