The average rent paid by those renting in the PRS is now at a record high, according to latest rental index from Homelet.

The data shows that every region in the country saw a hike in July, with the average rent now stood at £1,243 per calendar month (pcm).

On average rents increased by 1.1%, with each individual region seeing costs for tenants grow. Rents outside of London rose by a typical 1% to an average of £1,037pcm.

Over the month, Scotland saw the largest rise at 3.5%, followed by Northern Ireland on 2%.

The smallest change occurred in the South West, where rents rose by just 0.2%.

On an annual basis, average rents grew by 10.3%. Again Scotland was the region to see the biggest change, with rents jumping 15.8% over the year, followed by the 12.9% hike in London.

The research shows that affordability is becoming a major concern for renters, with rents now accounting for 32.1% of incomes on average, up from 30.2% a year ago.

The rent to income ratio grows to 38.3% in London. However, renters in both the North East and Scotland are spending a smaller proportion of their income on rent than was the case 12 months ago.

Andy Halstead, chief executive officer at HomeLet, said: “It is worth saying that extreme rental prices does not equate to all time high margins for landlords either. Landlords being unable to rely on rental income is a terrible scenario.”