NORTHERN Ireland was one of the only regions of the UK to experience a decline in domestic rental rates in June.
The latest HomeLet Rental Index found average monthly rent in the north in the three months to June was £612 - down 2.7 per cent in the three months to May.
However the figure was 4.3 pre cent higher than rates charged in the same period last year.
The picture across the UK was of rising rates, although rent is increasing at a slower pace.
Excluding London, the average monthly rent is £773 per month, 3.5 per cent higher than a year ago.
The data suggests the private rental sector has responded to the needs and concerns of landlords and tenants alike during the first half of the year.
Landlords were hit by higher stamp duty charges on purchases of new property in April, which led to a rush to complete transactions before then – and a spike in the supply of rental property thereafter.
Martin Totty, Barbon Insurance Group’s chief executive officer said the index, "shows that the rental market remains resilient in the face of the various economic and political headwinds the sector has faced recently".
"Landlords are continuing to secure rental growth whilst there are some early signs of affordability criteria beginning to bear on the rates of rental price growth," he said.
“The impact of the EU referendum vote will now play out over the months ahead: if, as expected, the result acts as a restraint on the supply of new housing, the gap between demand and supply in the private rental sector will remain marked; all the more so if more people decide to rent while waiting to see what happens to house prices."
