Demand for rental homes in UK up by 23% in a year, as rents hit record high

Competition among tenants for properties intensified by potential buyers delaying plans and lower supply of smaller homes

Demand for rental homes across the UK has jumped by nearly a quarter in a year, research has found, piling more pressure on an oversubscribed market and pushing record private rents even higher.

The number of people enquiring about homes to rent is up 23% on this time last year, according to the property website Rightmove, driven in part by some would-be buyers putting their plans on hold in the hope that mortgage rates will drop in the new year.