The cost of renting a typical home in Great Britain has dropped below the average monthly mortgage payment, reversing the position from earlier this year as borrowing costs move higher.
The latest data from Rightmove shows the average advertised rent is now £1,547 per month, compared with an estimated £1,670 for a new mortgage – a gap of £123 in favour of renting. It marks the first time since June 2025 that renting has been the cheaper option.
The shift has been driven by changes in mortgage pricing rather than rental growth. The average two-year fixed rate has risen from 4.24% in February to 5.35% in April, increasing repayment costs for new buyers. The mortgage figures are based on the current average asking price of £373,971 and assume a 20% deposit and a 30-year term. Rents, in comparison, have remained relatively stable.
Significant regional variations
The national picture, though, masks some significant regional variations. As a result of lower property values, Scotland and the North East are the only areas where a typical mortgage is still cheaper than renting. In Scotland, for example, the average mortgage payment is £930 compared with rents of £1,121, while in the North East the figures are £886 and £931 respectively.
At the opposite end of the scale, London and the South East have the largest divergence. In London, the average mortgage payment is now £3,038 per month against rents of £2,676, while in the South East, the gap is similar at £2,155 compared with £1,792. These differences reflect how higher property prices increase the size of loans required, which in turn raises monthly repayments when interest rates are elevated.
Renting cheaper in more than two-thirds of GB
Overall, renting is now cheaper than buying in more than two-thirds of local authorities in Great Britain. That proportion has more than doubled since February, when mortgage rates were lower, and the balance between renting and buying was more evenly distributed.
Local data shows how the gap between rents and mortgage payments varies not just by region but also by area. In Westminster, the average mortgage payment is £6,343 per month compared with £5,053 for rent, creating a gap of £1,290. There are similar patterns in Kensington and Chelsea, Elmbridge and St Albans, where high property values translate into substantially higher borrowing costs relative to rents.
In Midlothian, the average mortgage payment is £1,103 compared with rents of £1,494, a difference of £391. In Glasgow, the figures are £780 and £1,105 respectively, while in Sefton (£1,105 vs £1,473) and Salford (£1,096 vs £1,323), mortgage payments are also lower than rents.
Incentive to rent rather than buy
Rightmove’s Colleen Babcock says: “Mortgage payments have risen quite sharply in a short space of time for new buyers. It will be interesting to see whether more would-be buyers turn to renting temporarily while rates remain high, particularly when monthly costs can exceed average rents and the timing of rate cuts is still unclear.”
For investors in buy-to-let, the changing dynamics mean there is a clear incentive for tenants to remain in the rental sector, and that, in turn, will put upward pressure on the shrinking supply of rental stock.
