December rents

The average rent in England and Wales fell by 0.8% to £711 per month during December according to LSL Property Services, following a small fall in November.

The figures tally with Rent Index figures which show a fall of 2.45% over the last 3 months.

This comes as no surprise to landlords as December is traditionally a difficult month for letting.

"Rents dipped again in December, but the drop-off was much smaller than a year ago" said David Brown, commercial director of LSL Property Services.

"The rental market was sheltered from the full impact of the seasonal lull by the strength of underlying tenant demand as many prospective renters took the opportunity to move in the run-up to Christmas at a time when the market is traditionally less competitive."