The upfront cost of renting has still increased in most regions of England despite the five-week deposit cap, research suggests.

Analysis of mydeposits and ONS data compared the current initial cost of securing a rental home based on one month’s rent plus a deposit of five weeks now and before the introduction of the tenant fee ban and deposit cap in June of last year.

On a national level, the cap seems to have had the desired impact, with the initial cost of renting in England as a whole down 2% annually to £1,897.

However, this is mainly due to a 5% annual drop in London to £3,699 this year.

The rest of the regions of England were either flat or registered an increase.

This was led by the south west where the initial cost increased by 4% annually to £1,841, according to the research.

Tenants in some locations could still be paying up to a quarter more annually.

The upfront cost in Corby was found to be up 24% to £1,566, while Exeter and Charnwood also showed a 23% increase.

The largest decline was in York, where the upfront cost for tenants has fallen 18% annually to £1,913.

The research was conducted by mydeposits’ sister brand Ome, the deposit replacement scheme.

Its co-founder Matthew Hooker said: “There’s no doubt that the tenant fee ban has had an impact on the affordability of renting.

“However, while some have seen the cost of securing a rental property drop, tenants in many parts of the national rental market have still seen sharp increases.

“This increase will have been driven mainly by a reduction of rental accommodation to meet demand as many buy-to-let landlords reconsider their investments due to a string of government changes to the sector.

“Particularly in the current climate, we must work across the sector as a whole to ensure both landlords and tenants are looked after and there is enough stock available to service this demand.”