Cost of renting in London down 2.9% year-on-year

Rents across the capital dropped year-on-year in 2016 as more properties flooded the market, according to lettings network Countrywide.

Average monthly rents ended the year 2.9% down on 2015 to £1,246 - £37 per month less than 12 months previously.

In central London, rents plunged by 9.4% in December, to reach around £2,381 per month.

Across in the country, rents increased at their slowest pace in seven years in 2016 - just 1.6%, reaching an average of £927 per month.

The annual increase was around half that seen in 2015, when rents recorded a 3.1% uplift. Last year also marked the slowest annual increase seen since 2009, when rents increased by 0.9%.

A stamp duty hike for buy-to-let investors on April 1 2016 prompted a rush of landlords snapping up properties ahead of the deadline.

Many of the homes that were bought during the stampede will now be available to renters.

Johnny Morris, research director at Countrywide, said: "Landlords are increasingly tempting sitting tenants to renew contracts with the promise of unchanged or even lower rents."

But he warned: "Rental growth will likely increase in 2017. Squeezed yields, fewer tax breaks and higher stamp duty rates are likely to deter landlords from expanding their portfolios.

"Fewer homes on the market will leave tenants with less choice and negotiating power."