Average monthly rent in Britain breaks £1,000 for first time

The average cost of rent in Britain has smashed the £1,000 mark for the first time ever on record.

Tenants now pay an average £1,007 a month on rent, a 5.9% increase on the same time in 2019 and up 7% on last year.

Figures released by Homelet shows that each region in the UK has witnessed an annual increase in rent.

For the first time in a year, London has shown a rise in rental costs of 1.5%, taking the average cost of renting a property in the capital to £1,607 per calendar month.

Excluding London, where the average rental price is still marginally lower than pre-Covid, the median rent price in the UK is 8% higher than in 2020. The average tenants pay per calendar month is £861, representing a 10% increase on pre-pandemic costs.

The Southwest of England has witnessed the highest price rises. In this region, the average price of rent is £948 a month, a 10.5% increase compared to this time last year and a staggering 12.6% rise on costs before the pandemic struck.

Scotland experienced the highest month-over-month rise. In June 2021, the average cost of renting a home was £738 per calendar month, marking a 4.4% month-over-month rise.

Homelet & Let Alliance’s Chief Executive Office Andy Halstead, commented on the figures: “

“Throughout the Coronavirus pandemic, the government rightly took measures to protect tenants but didn’t go far enough to balance the protection for landlords. It’s a continuation of the theme that we’ve seen for many years, with landlords being penalised by higher taxes and increased complexity in obtaining possession of their properties.

“In simple terms, increased costs for landlords mean increased costs for tenants. Some landlords have exited the market whilst the stamp duty holiday has stimulated the sales market, impacting the stock level. These are all factors driving an increase in rental values for new tenancies, which are way above the rate of inflation,” Halstead continued.

Rising rental costs are coupled with buy-to-let mortgage choice improving for landlords, leading to industry commentators to pose the question – is now the time to invest in property?

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