Average rental growth improved during March, led by the fast moving east midlands market.

Your Move’s England and Wales Rental Tracker for March revealed rental price inflation was at 3.2% last month, up from 3% in February, meaning tenants were paying £860 on average a month.

The east midlands region posted faster rent increases than any other part of England and Wales in the year to March.

The region posted an average price increase of 3.2% in the past 12 months. The typical property now costs £893, the joint second most expensive place in the survey, tied with the south east.

The north east was the region to post the largest price fall, with the typical rent dropping 1.8% year-on-year to £536 per calendar month – the lowest in this survey.

Wales also saw a drop, with prices down by 0.8% to £593 per calendar month.

London remains the most expensive place to rent with an average price of £1,276, although this was flat compared to March 2017.

Martyn Alderton, national lettings director at Your Move, said: “The market in London has stopped its recent slowdown, but still lags behind the strong growth seen in the east midlands.”