When compared to January 2013, the overall rental market has increased by an average of 1.63%, taking the average advertised rent to £987 per month and it is on track to surpass the £1,000 mark this year, according to the data from Move with Us.
Average advertised rents in Greater London rose by 0.61% to £2,221 per month in January, a strong performance which significantly contributed to the overall national increase. Asking rents in the capital remain the most expensive in the country and are almost double those in the second highest performing region, the South East, where the average asking rent currently sits at £1,138 per month.
Landlords in Scotland, East Anglia and the South East are letting in the strongest performing regions when measured against January 2013 with increases in advertised rents of 3.57%, 3.45% and 2.17% per month respectively.
Tenants in Wales and in the North East saw a fall in monthly average rents in January, down by 0.98% and 1.77% respectively when compared to the same time last year. These reductions resulted from sharp increases witnessed by both areas in the last quarter of 2013 when the average rent increased by approximately £60 in each region.
The report says that it would appear that advertised rents in these regions are returning to a more stable position similar to those seen in 2013. In January 2014, average advertised rents stood at £679 per month in Wales and £695 per month in the North East.
‘Landlords in Scotland have seen a strong start to the year benefiting from good rental yields in places such as Aberdeen due to the high wages and short employment contracts of the oil and gas industry,’ said Robin King, director of Move with Us.
‘London continues to operate in its own bubble and asking rents are on the rise again following declines. It is likely that the current increase in average asking rents is a sign of further increases to come as the population growth in Greater London carries on,’ he explained.
‘Figures from the Office for National Statistics put the population of the capital in excess of 8.17 million people, over one million people more than 10 years ago. With the number of new homes being built not keeping pace with the rising population, competition for rental properties is becoming fiercer, pushing rental prices up,’ he explained.
He pointed out that it is likely regions such as the South East and East Anglia have also been impacted by the population growth, benefiting from a ripple effect as higher commuter numbers move to the more affordable areas surrounding Greater London. ‘This continues to contribute to the rise in rents reported in these regions, a trend which shows no sign of stopping in 2014,’ said King.
‘Although increasing rental prices in most regions in Britain is great news for landlords, it’s not such good news for prospective tenants. Anyone looking to rent will be able to secure a more affordable rental price by acting sooner rather than later as rental prices look set to rise in the coming months,’ he added.
