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Buy to Let

Average rent in London hits record high of over £2k a month

Christina Hoghton
Written By:
Christina Hoghton
Posted:
Updated:
18/01/2019

A 22% drop in rental supply has led to a significant rise in rents this year

Average asking rents in London rose to an all-time high by the end of 2018, surpassing the previous peak from almost three years, according to Rightmove.

The property portal said that asking rents in the capital are now increasing at an annual rate not seen since the start of 2015, and have risen to a new record of £2,034 per month.

The reason is a straightforward one. Compared with this time last year, available rental stock in London is down 22%. The drop in buy-to-let activity and increased demand from tenants has led to a lack of choice which has, in turn, pushed up prices.
High demand

Hertford saw the largest rise in demand from tenants over the past year outside London, while East Ham has seen the biggest increase in demand in London.

Rightmove predicts that asking rents will rise by 3% outside London, and 4% in London in 2019.

Commercial director Miles Shipside said: “The increasing rents in London reflect that demand has been exceeding supply over the past year. When the Government introduced higher stamp duty on second home purchases back in 2016, it deterred many landlords from investing in the buy-to-let market, which in turn has exacerbated this ongoing dearth of available properties, and we’re yet to see any significant boost in stock from the many build-to-rent programmes.

“In addition, the more punitive treatment of tax reliefs has meant some landlords are also exiting.”