Areas / Rental yields
Rental yields in Northern Ireland by area.
The average gross rental yield across Northern Ireland is 5.2%: a typical home costs £202,487 and the average private rent is £874 a month. Here's how 12 towns compare, from the latest official figures.
At a glance
- Highest yield: Belfast at 7.4%, where the average rent of £1,134 a month is high for a typical price of £184,768.
- Lowest yield: Enniskillen and Omagh at 3.9%, with an average rent of £662 a month against a typical price of £201,732.
- Yields are falling: house prices rose 9.2% over the year while rents rose 1.6%, so the Northern Ireland yield moved from about 5.6% a year earlier to 5.2%.
Gross rental yield by town
Highest yield first. House prices Q2 2026; rents June 2026.
| Area | Typical house price | Price change (1 yr) | Average rent a month | Rent change (1 yr) | Gross yield | A year earlier |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Belfast | £184,768 | +7.7% | £1,134 | +2.9% | 7.4% | 7.7% |
| Ballymena | £177,450 | +8.2% | £796 | +1.9% | 5.4% | 5.7% |
| Downpatrick | £220,572 | +12.8% | £949 | +1.0% | 5.2% | 5.8% |
| Bangor | £227,275 | +7.0% | £949 | +1.0% | 5.0% | 5.3% |
| Derry / Londonderry | £189,474 | +12.4% | £792 | +2.8% | 5.0% | 5.5% |
| Craigavon | £186,993 | +9.2% | £764 | +1.5% | 4.9% | 5.3% |
| Lisburn | £240,737 | +9.7% | £949 | +1.0% | 4.7% | 5.1% |
| Newtownabbey | £206,120 | +8.8% | £796 | +1.9% | 4.6% | 4.9% |
| Coleraine | £218,871 | +9.6% | £808 | +3.1% | 4.4% | 4.7% |
| Newry | £220,572 | +12.8% | £783 | +4.1% | 4.3% | 4.6% |
| Enniskillen | £201,732 | +11.0% | £662 | +0.6% | 3.9% | 4.3% |
| Omagh | £201,732 | +11.0% | £662 | +0.6% | 3.9% | 4.3% |
| Northern Ireland | £202,487 | +9.2% | £874 | +1.6% | 5.2% | 5.6% |
Each town uses the typical price for its council area and the average rent for its rental market area; towns in the same council or rental area share those figures. “A year earlier” is worked back from the annual price and rent changes, so treat it as approximate.
Average rent by number of bedrooms
Average monthly private rent by rental market area, June 2026. Bigger homes rent for more, but usually cost proportionally more to buy.
| Rental market area | 1 bed | 2 bed | 3 bed | 4+ bed | All |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Belfast rental market area | £836 | £962 | £1,104 | £1,590 | £1,134 |
| Lough Neagh Lower rental market area | £523 | £666 | £784 | £1,044 | £764 |
| Lough Neagh Upper rental market area | £562 | £706 | £801 | £1,082 | £796 |
| North Northern Ireland rental market area | £564 | £708 | £833 | £1,099 | £808 |
| North West Northern Ireland rental market area | £548 | £698 | £795 | £1,095 | £792 |
| South East Northern Ireland rental market area | £658 | £842 | £968 | £1,344 | £949 |
| South Northern Ireland rental market area | £570 | £708 | £810 | £1,112 | £783 |
| South West Northern Ireland rental market area | £481 | £601 | £689 | £925 | £662 |
| Northern Ireland | £621 | £764 | £875 | £1,223 | £874 |
How the yields are worked out
Gross yield is the year's rent as a percentage of the price: average monthly rent × 12 ÷ typical house price. For example, Belfast: £1,134 × 12 ÷ £184,768 = 7.4%.
It's a starting point, not what a landlord actually earns. A net yield takes off letting and management fees, maintenance, insurance, void months and mortgage interest, and is usually a good deal lower. A particular property can also rent or sell well above or below its area's average.
To see the numbers for a real property, with your own rent, costs and mortgage, use the buy-to-let deal calculator.
Where the figures come from
House prices: the standardised price for each council area from the Northern Ireland House Price Index, Land & Property Services and NISRA, Q2 2026 (published 19 August 2026). It's the modelled price of a typical home, so it isn't skewed by the mix of properties sold.
Rents: the average monthly private rent for each rental market area from the Price Index of Private Rents, Office for National Statistics, June 2026 (published 16 September 2026).
We update this page when new figures are published. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. These figures are not valuations, predictions or financial advice.