The latest lettings index has revealed the growth in rental rates throughout the UK across the 12 months to January 2018, with tenants paying record-breaking numbers to rent a home last year.
According to recent figures, rental payments in Britain rose by 2.4% from January 2017 to January 2018, taking the average monthly rent to &958 at the start of the new year.
This rise resulted in tenants paying out &1.8 billion more than they did in 2016, taking total rental payments across the year to a record &51.6 billion, a figure that has more than doubled over the course of the last decade.
The largest increases were seen in Greater London with rents increasing by 3.3% to a monthly average of &1,704. Not too far behind were the regions of the Midlands and the South West, all of which saw their rental prices grow by 2.7% across the year to averages of &669 and &787.
The index also showed that Wales saw a more modest rise of 1.1% to &646 and Scotland saw very little movement in this regard with a slight rise of 0.6% to a new average of &624.
The average across Britain was an increase of 1.9% - if you exclude London - and the only region to see a fall in rental rates was the North East.
Research Director at Countrywide, Johnny Morris, points out that their research shows that the rental market is growing and although the majority of tenants in the UK are Millennials, there is still a strong proportion of the market that is made up of those belonging to an older generation.
Morris commented on the recent research, he said; “The rental market grew in 2017. More people joined the rented sector and average rents increased, meaning 2017 saw the highest total rent bill so far. As millennials age, more are becoming homeowners, so the total amount they’re paying in rent has started to drop. But the Generation Rent title still applies. Any fall will be much smaller and slower than seen by previous generations as less become homeowners.”
