Rental hotspots in 2025 – a UK trend report

The UK’s top-trending rental locations among British tenants

Find our interactive data map above that shows the top and bottom-trending results. Choose to see search results from the UK, globally or specific major UK cities. 

England and Wales’ latest census shows one in five people (external link) (20.3%) rent privately, up 4% on the previous census. That's some five million tenants in the market for a rental property. Scotland’s latest census also shows a 10% increase as 311,527 rent privately (external link) and Northern Ireland’s most recent records show 129,600 rent privately (external link). 

To identify shifts in rental demand, we compared Google searches for “flats to rent in [location]” and “houses to rent in [location]” between 30 April 2024 and 29 April 2025 against the same period 12 months prior. 

After looking at UK-wide searches for flats to rent, our analysis found that: 

• London, Birmingham, and Edinburgh were the top trending cities for flat-hunters.
• London flat-hunters grew by 20,000 searches (a 3.5% increase) in the space of a year.
• Despite Edinburgh’s high ranking, demand across Scotland’s other major cities waned, with Glasgow seeing the biggest drop in the UK - 18,000 fewer searches (-8.7%). Dundee and Aberdeen also appeared in the bottom 15.
• The affluent area of Chelsea took the top spot within London, followed by Battersea and Fulham.
• Outside of cities, Essex’s Clacton-on-Sea and Northamptonshire’s Brackley saw the biggest increase in searches among flat-hunters.
• Cities mostly occupied the bottom spots (10/15). Coastal towns took the remaining five bottom positions: South Shields, Bournemouth, Blackpool, Scarborough and Poole. 

Some things never change, and in the world of property, that "something" is London's undeniable appeal to renters. It saw the most growth in interest and received the highest total number of Google searches from prospective flat-hunters, remaining the UK’s biggest rental market. 

Commenting on London’s result, Silvina Paz, London rental market specialist, says, “The London rental market has undergone significant changes in recent years, especially since the pandemic. Many people left the city in search of coastal and countryside life, and the number of properties available for rent has sharply declined. But now we’re finding people who left are making a comeback. This is partly because many companies and employers now require more days in the office rather than working from home. 

"This demand versus supply imbalance has caused a steep rise in rental prices.” 

Looking at UK-wide searches for houses to rent, the results largely differed: 

• Cities occupied the top four trending spots (London, Cardiff, Birmingham, and Glasgow – which didn’t fare so well for flat-hunters).
• Towns were the real winners, however, taking nine of the top 15 trending positions.
• Coastal towns were highly sought after among house-hunters, as Houghton-le-Spring, Troon, and Skegness – once dubbed ‘the worst seaside town’ – topped the charts. You can never underestimate the underdog, especially if it has coastal views.
• Hounslow was the only place in London to fall out of fashion, with searches decreasing by 15,600 (-30%).
• Cities were marginally less popular than towns as they occupied eight of the bottom 15 positions.

The UK’s top-trending rental locations among international tenants 

It’s not just Brits who are looking for tenancies in the UK, demand exists globally - from Australia to the USA. We replicated our above analysis to identify where’s most attractive to international tenants looking for a rental property. 

Looking at global searches for flats to rent in the UK, our analysis found that: 

• Bristol, Oxford and Leeds were the top three emerging hotspots for international flat-hunters, with searches increasing from 28,000 to 5,000.
• Outside of cities, Warrington, Derry, and Watford were also attracting more renters.
• London found itself as a bottom-trending location with searches dropping by 59,000 (that’s a 7% decrease).
• Other major cities fell out of favour, including Manchester, Cardiff, and Glasgow – which fared better among British rental-seekers. 

When looking at global searches for houses to rent in the UK, only a few similarities appeared compared to flat-hunters: 

• Bolton, Oxford and Leeds were new favourites for house-hunters, ranking in the top three trending spots.
• Aside from Bolton, other towns, including Tamworth and Ipswich, were emerging hotspots – interest grew by 2,900 and 2,600 searches respectively.
• Overall, house-hunting in London was in notable decline. Flat-hunters dropped by 50,400 searches against the year before (a 21% decrease).
• However, Camden, Enfield, and Acton saw a surge in searches, all over 2,000. 

London in focus – the capital’s top-trending rental locations 

Find our interactive data map above that shows the top and bottom-trending results. Choose to see search results from the UK or globally for London. 

Although our analysis revealed fluctuating rental demand in London, it remains the UK’s largest rental hub across the board. We focused on 107 places across the capital to reveal which locations are becoming more attractive in 2025. 

The analysis of UK and global flat-hunters found that: 

Chelsea, Battersea, and Fulham dominated the trend report. All three neighbouring areas can be found in the West and Southwest of the city, and at the top of British flat-hunters' wish lists. However, in the Southwestern suburbs, Twickenham was among the bottom-trending spots, only eclipsed by Bromley and Croydon – which are in the Southeast. 

Silvina says, “Of late, Chelsea has emerged as the 'cool' area to live in Central London. Recent regeneration has transformed the area, and Pavilion Road and the top of King’s Road are buzzing any day of the week. 

“It may also have an edge in rental availability. In my experience, Chelsea properties tend to be of higher quality, offering better value for the high rents typical in Central London. 

“Its pubs are cosy and welcoming, the shops luxurious and tempting, and even the dogs are impeccably groomed! The area also enjoys a reputation for safety, which adds to its appeal. The culinary scene has kept pace, offering a variety of enticing options.” 

Social media has become a large influencer of London’s scene. Where is trendy, according to the search analysis, can also be reflective of TikTok popularity. Looking at the number of geotagged TikTok posts, Chelsea has 30.7K and Battersea 20.2K. 

International flat-hunters had a more diverse wish list. The Southwest remained reigning supreme as Kensington topped the chart, but it was closely followed by Beckenham, a commuter town in the Southeast, and East London’s Shoreditch. Putney fell the most out of fashion. 

Silvina says, “Shoreditch’s surge is likely linked to more IT and tech companies opening in the area. 

“Kensington’s popularity could stem from its proximity to Imperial College among international students. Plus, there’s an abundance of mansion blocks in the area. These blocks appeal to renters concerned about security, offering porters and cameras for added peace of mind. Areas like Chelsea and Kensington -where properties feel safer and more secure - seem poised to maintain their appeal.” 

When looking at house-hunters, the analysis revealed: 

Westminster, Beckenham, and Chelsea had the most demand among British house-hunters – with Beckenham carrying a notably lower price tag than its top three neighbours. 

Popular tourist spot Camden was a hit among international tenants, but interest in Hounslow took a nosedive on both counts, with the biggest decline in demand among both British and international house-hunters. 

Methodology: 

To pinpoint the UK's emerging rental hotspots, we conducted a comprehensive analysis of Google search data, focusing on search volumes from the past two years. We analysed data collected between 30 April 2024 and 29 April 2025, comparing it to the same period 12 months prior, which illuminated shifts in rental demand across various locations. We segmented the data into searches for "flats" and "houses" to capture regional preferences and interest in specific property types. For a broader view, we also aggregated these categories to create a total rental search metric. 

Our keywords were chosen to reflect typical search phrases, specifically “flats to rent in [location]” and “houses to rent in [location]”, ensuring an accurate representation of search interest in each area. The analysis spanned the 1,000 most populous cities and towns across the UK, with an additional breakdown of 107 London locations to explore trends in the country’s largest rental market. 

The results were grouped by the location of the search, grouping all UK search volumes together, and all international searches together (excluding the UK). We organised the ranks by ‘raw’ search volumes. 

Notes and caveats: 

It’s important to note potential data discrepancies for certain locations with namesakes abroad. For example, Perth in Scotland was excluded from the analysis due to significant interference from its larger namesake in Australia. Likewise, we omitted Bangor due to overlapping search results for two cities, one in Wales and another in Northern Ireland. Equally, the global search analysis may capture data for cities and towns that have namesakes elsewhere. Every effort was made to ensure data validity. 

The views of the expert cited are not the views of Hiscox. 

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