Feb

RENTS: Annual inflation hits 8.5% as tenants fight over fewer properties

admin

The average rent in the UK increased by 0.4% during January to £1,064 per tenancy, or £897 if London’s sky-high rents are omitted, the UK’s most comprehensive rental index has revealed.

HomeLet, which uses data from some 5,000 participating letting agents and a million references each year, says while UK rents are increasing by 8.5% a year, London’s are 12.6% higher year-on-year.

Also, eight of the UK’s 12 regions and countries (see table below) saw rent increases last month, although annual increases remain strong across all of them on a yearly basis with rises strongest in the NW, Scotland, Northern Ireland and the SW.

The figures starkly reveal the current problems facing the private rented sector – the government’s energetic effort to batter landlords on a number of tax and regulatory fronts are leading to less stock while many tenants are staying put as they put off buying their first home.

“As expected, 2022 has started as 2021 ended, with an imbalance between supply and demand, and inevitably that has brought on price rises, that will likely continue in the coming months,” says Andy Halstead, HomeLet & Let Alliance’s CEO (pictured, below).

“There are some caveats, though. Though we have seen another record high rental price this month, we must consider inflation rates, a topic that has been discussed heavily in the past couple of weeks.

“Based on the latest inflation figures, the month-on-month rent increases have been lower than the wider inflation rate, indicating a level of steady growth.

“The private rental sector has played a key role in the UK throughout the pandemic, and we hope that the government will make things easier for landlords in 2022, to allow them to continue playing a key role in the coming months and years.”