The JLL Big Six Residential Development Report compares activity, prices, and rents across six UK cities outside London: Birmingham, Bristol, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds and Manchester.This report incorporates data from the JLL UK Cities index, comparing changes in prices and rents across mainstream and prime developments in each city.
In the sales market, average prices hold steady across most Big Six cities, rising 1.7% on average in June 2025, compared to a year earlier. Buyers are still favouring smaller and more affordable homes and locations, resulting in cities such as Birmingham and Glasgow recording some of the highest price growth.
June 2025 numbers have showcased the normalisation of rental markets across the Big Six cities, with average annual rental growth softening to 2.1% (down from 4.2% in December 2024). Four of the six cities have a BTR pipeline larger than the existing number of units; if these units can be delivered as expected, the increase in stock on the market will help to encourage home-movers and increased rental activity.
Development viability remains the underlying challenge though, impacting new homes completions. Challenges over planning, particularly around ‘high-rise’ (18m+ buildings) and the Gateway process are impacting the delivery of new homes across the Big Six.
