The majority – 15 out of 18 areas – of Scotland saw increases in average private rents over the last year, said the Scottish Government, ranging from 0.7% in the Ayrshires to 6.9% in Lothian and 7.0% in Greater Glasgow.

The published headline statistics are based on two-bedroom properties, as they are the most prevalent across the country in the private rented secor.

Overall there was a 4.4% increase in average two-bedroom monthly rents across Scotland, from £616 in 2016 to £643 in 2017, the highest annual increase since 2010, and above inflation.

However, not all regions saw a rent rise. Aberdeen and Shire saw a decrease in typical rent of 9.6%, the third consecutive annual decrease, which is likely to reflect decreased demand for rental properties following the downturn in the oil industry.

Long-term trends

Over the longer-term, from 2010 to 2017, the two areas of Lothian and Greater Glasgow have both seen two-bedroom average rents increase above the rate of inflation of 15.9% over the period, with all other sixteen areas of Scotland seeing cumulative rent increases below the rate of inflation.

The Lothian area has seen the highest increase, with average monthly rents rising by 33.7% (cumulative increase over seven years), whilst average rents in the Greater Glasgow area have risen by a cumulative 32.1%.

For the year to end-September 2017, Lothian had the highest average monthly rents for two-bedroom properties across Scotland (£888). Other areas with high rents included Greater Glasgow (£745), Aberdeen and Shire (£682), and East Dunbartonshire (£653). Areas with the lowest average rents for two-bedroom properties included Dumfries and Galloway (£453), Scottish Borders (£459), and the Ayrshires (£467).