UK Landlord Forum / Life

Hi all, I am planning to rent out my property via a lettings agency.  What is the standard practice regarding increasing rent per year and by what percent?  Should I give the lettings agency instruction to increase rent at 5% each year for example.  What percent increase is standard practice.
Thanks in advance Dennis

There is no such thing.

Bad practice would be doing nothing for years and years and then panicking that your asset isn't rewarding you enough and trying to impose a high rent increase upon your long-standing Tenant. Bit of a shock, that.

So try not to do that.

Modest increases yearly are the way to go. 2%... inflation... whatever you want. 5% each year sounds high to me... but I'm unsure what your property is like, or how desirable it is, or where it's located. It might work, who knows? But after 5 years of that, the rent will have increased by over 25%. I don't think many Tenants can stomach that.

I have a property that started out at £550 and now earns me £650... that has been a tenancy running for 8 years now, and looks like it will continue. In that same time my mortgage payment has decreased, so that's a double-win. Think of the boiling a frog story.

thanks for the reply.  Yes I agree that 5% is a bit harsh.  The rent will be £1400 per month for a 3 bed terrace in an upmarket postcode.  Should I give instruction to the lettings agency of yearly increases or just ask to increase in the future after a period of time.
thanks Dennis