David Fell, lead analyst at Hamptons, said: “May marked the first month of the Renters’ Rights Act becoming law.
“With above-asking-price bidding wars banned, a divide has begun to open up between advertised prices and the rents being achieved.
“May saw many landlords advertise homes at higher values to avoid those initial prices becoming a cap on the rent they are able to achieve.
“Over the last year, around two-thirds of homes were let at the full asking price.
“However, during May, this figure fell to just over 40 per cent, reflecting higher initial asking rents.
“This upward adjustment in advertised rents is likely to be a one-off.
“So tenants are finding there is slightly more room to negotiate down from these higher baseline prices.
“While the ban on bidding wars has inflated advertised prices slightly, it looks unlikely to influence the actual level of rents being agreed.”
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