Rents fall in Scotland

But new record high in Edinburgh

One bedroom flat to rent, Smithfield Street, Edinburgh EH11. On with 1-2-Let for £495 pcm (£114 pw).

Rents in Scotland were down 0.2 per cent in September, according to the latest Your Move figures.

Its report estimates that the average residential rent in Scotland is now £536 per month, the first monthly fall in rents for three months. However, rents are still two per cent higher than a year ago.

"Talk of tenancy reforms to cap rents seems widely out of touch with reality," said Gordon Fowlis, regional managing director of Your Move. "The private rented sector is hardly a runaway train that needs reining in. Rent rises are slowing on an annual basis and retreating back in line with the target rate of inflation."

Rents fell in four out of five regions of Scotland with the biggest month-on-month drop in Glasgow & Clyde (down 0.9 per cent).

The only region to see a rise was Edinburgh & the Lothians, up 1.5 per cent to a new record high of £611 per month.

Earlier this month, LSL Property Services reported that the average house price in Scotland had fallen 0.2 per cent in August, the first downward move in 12 months.