Rents continue to rise but landlords are getting conscious about tenant affordability amid uncertainty following the Brexit vote and ahead of further tax changes next year.

Homelet’s June Rental Index shows that average newly agreed rents in the UK excluding London are now 3.5% higher than a year ago at £773, and are up 3.9% in the capital to £1,575.

In contrast, the figure last month was 4.4% across the UK and 6.2% in London, suggesting growth in rents is slowing down.

Rents continue to rise in almost every area of the country, except the north-west and north-east, the data shows.

Martin Totty, of HomeLet parent company Barbon Insurance Group, said: “The June HomeLet Rental Index shows that the rental market remains resilient in the face of the various economic and political headwinds the sector has faced recently.

“Landlords are continuing to secure rental growth whilst there are some early signs of affordability criteria beginning to bear on the rates of rental price growth.

“The impact of the EU referendum vote will now play out over the months ahead. If, as expected, the result acts as a restraint on the supply of new housing, the gap between demand and supply in the private rental sector will remain marked – all the more so if more people decide to rent while waiting to see what happens to house prices.”

He said landlords would be considering their position carefully ahead of mortgage interest relief tax changes next year, adding: “With long-term drivers such as net population growth still in place, it is likely that rents will continue to rise, though affordability will continue to be crucial.

“The recent slowdown in rental growth rates may suggest an affordability ceiling is being approached.”