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Buy to Let

Average rents up 6% in the last year, as demand rockets

Christina Hoghton
Written By:
Christina Hoghton
Posted:
Updated:
16/11/2021

More people are looking for a home to rent but supply has fallen, pushing up costs in many parts of the UK

Rent increases have hit a 13-year high, according to Zoopla.

The property portal said that demand for rented proprty has doubled in the central zones of major cities.

And, for the first time in 16 months, even London rents are rising.

The typical cost of renting a home in the UK, excluding London, is now £809 per month, 6% more than a year earlier.

Supply and demand imbalance

While renters are returning to cities, the rise in demand is not being met by an increase in the number of homes available to rent, forcing rents higher.

Zoopla said that demand for rental homes is 43% above the five-year average, but the number of properties available to rent is 43% lower than usual.

Affordability has remained largely unchanged thanks to rising pay, with rents accounting for an average of 37% of a single tenant’s monthly income.

Gráinne Gilmore, head of research at Zoopla, said: “Households looking for the flexibility of rental accommodation, especially students and city workers, are back in the market after consecutive lockdowns affected demand levels in major cities.”

Where are rents rising fastest?

The South West saw the biggest jump in rental growth at 9%, followed by Wales, where rents have risen 7.7% year-on-year and the East Midlands at 6.9%.

Rent increases are running well ahead of the five-year average in many of the UK’s largest cities, with Bristol seeing the strongest rise of 8.4%, followed by Nottingham at 8.3%, and Glasgow in third place at 7.2%.

Even in London, rents, which had fallen for 15 months in a row, are rising again, increasing by 1.6% in the year to the end of September as offices reopened and city life resumed.