More than 40% of landlords have increased their rents over the past year, according to new findings.

Market research company BDRC Continental and property consultants Allsop LLP, the Rent Check Report revealed a thriving rental market has resulted in 41% of proprietors throughout the country upping these costs in the past 12 months.

The study - which considered the views of 1,500 property investors - also showed that next year will see around one-quarter of landlords attempting to increase their portfolios, with many optimistic about what the future has in store.

With rented homes making up 17% of all households in England at present, the findings identified the private rental accommodation market as the fastest growing tenure.

Paul Winstanley, partner at Allsop LLP, said: "The demand for rented housing and the constraints on the wider housing market mean that rented housing is likely to retain the same income dynamics for the medium to long term."