Nearly half of landlords plan to raise rents by £888 this year

Tenants could see their rents increase before the Renters’ Rights Bill comes into force (Picture: Getty)

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Nearly half of buy-to-let landlords in Britain plan to increase the rent they charge because of the Renters’ Rights Bill,research shows.

The bill,brought in by Labour and set to come into force this year,means landlords will only be able to increase rents on their properties once per year.

This increase would also be capped at the market rate – the price they would achieve if the property had been newly advertised for rent.

But figures from housing lender Landbay found 44% of buy-to-let landlords will increase rents in response to the bill,by an average of 6%.

This is well above the current level of inflation of 3.6%.

This increase would add £74 to the average monthly rent,costing tenants an extra £888 per year.