Rents Outside London Soaring At Fastest Rate On Record

Private rents outside London are rising at their fastest rate for 13 years, research suggests, as tenants making plans for life post-pandemic compete for properties. The property website Zoopla said average rents across the UK outside the capital rose by 5% over the 12 months to the end of July – adding more than £450 to a typical annual rent bill – the biggest increase since its index began in 2008. However, locations popular with tenants quitting London and other big cities after reevaluating their lifestyle have seen rents jump by a lot more – up to 25%, according to some estate agents. Read more on the Guardian website.

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2021/sep/08/rents-outside-london-soaring-at-fastest-rate-on-record-agencies-say

PRS Rents Up By Less Than Inflation

The Office for National Statistics has published the latest Index of Private Housing Rental Prices for the UK for January 2020. It says:

·         Private rental prices paid by tenants in the UK rose by 1.5% in the 12 months to January 2020, up from 1.4% in December 2019.

·         Excluding London, rental prices for the UK increased by 1.6% in the year to January 2020, up from 1.5% in December 2019.

·         Private rental prices grew by 1.5% in England

·         Between January 2015 and December 2019, private rental prices in the UK increased by 8.6%

Read more on the ONS website.

https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/inflationandpriceindices/bulletins/indexofprivatehousingrentalprices/january2020

Rent Controls Would Leave Tenants ‘Worse Off’

The ONS’ rent index shows private sector rents across Britain increased by 1.1% in the year to January 2018. In London they grew by just 0.2%. This is against a current inflation figures of 2.7% (CPI) and 4% (RPI). The Residential Landlords Association (RLA) argues the figures show that calls by many in the Labour Party and elsewhere for rents to be linked to inflation would leave many tenants worse off. The figures further highlight that social sector rent increases, currently based on CPI plus 1%, are growing proportionally more than those in the private sector. Download the index from the ONS website.

https://www.ons.gov.uk/releases/indexofprivatehousingrentalpricesiphrpingreatbritainjan2018?utm_source=govdelivery&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=2018-02-013_12:00_govdelivery&utm_content=Prices-Day

Housing Crisis 'Single Most Important Driver of Poverty,'

UK government proposals to manage the housing crisis through rent controls are doomed to fail, according to a critical new report by the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA). In the UK, tenants are saddled with rents on average almost 50% higher than those in the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany and France. British politicians across the political spectrum agree that the UK is in the grips of a serious housing crisis. The average private sector rent in London has reached 62% of average income. And even across the rest of the UK, renters are spending nearly 20% more of their incomes on rent payments than their European counterparts. Put simply, housing in the UK, and renting in particular, is the most expensive in Europe. Read the report on the IEA website.

Five Facts About……….Housing

The steady rise in the cost of buying a home shows no sign of abating, as ONS figures reveal that average house prices have risen by 8.7% in the year to June 2016. But house prices are just one part of the story; here are five facts about housing in the UK, from renting to the number of homes being built.

1 The average UK house price was £214,000 in June 2016, £24,000 above its pre-economic downturn peak of £190,000 in September 2007.

2 The percentage of young adult householders owning their home decreased

3 All the countries that constitute Great Britain have experienced rises in their private rental prices since 2011.

4 In both 1995 and 2015 the cheapest small area in England and Wales to buy a property was in Lancashire

5 The overall level of house building in the UK has declined since 1980

For more details go to the ONS website.

Private Sector Rents Rise 2.6%

There’s been no change in the rate of private sector rental price rises between March and April this year in Great Britain but that’s not to say rents aren’t increasing, according to the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). The April 2016 Index of Private Housing Rental Prices (IPHRP) showed that private rents rose by 2.6% in the 12 months to April 2016, unchanged when compared with the year to March. Private rental prices grew by 2.8% in England, 0.2% in Wales and 0.5% in Scotland in the 12 months to April 2016. Meanwhile, rental prices increased in all the English regions over the year to April 2016, with rental prices increasing the most in London (3.7%). Read more on the Housing Excellence website.

Landlords Would 'Sell Up Rather Than Cut Rents'

London landlords are opposed to rent controls and many would sell up if they were forced to cut or cap their rents, according to a report commissioned by the London Assembly. Others warned they would have no incentive to invest in maintenance if the government tried to stabilise rent. The cost of a new tenancy in London jumped 11.9% between 2013 and 2014. The survey of 174 landlords analysed six proposals for cutting, capping or freezing private sector rents. Read more on the London Assembly website.

Low-Income Families in Private Housing Face Large Benefit Shortfalls

More than 300,000 low-income working families face a housing benefit shortfall, leaving them in some cases hundreds of pounds behind on rent each month. Research by Shelter predicts that 80% of working households claiming support to help meet soaring private-sector rents will be affected by the four-year housing benefit freeze announced in July’s budget. The research estimates typical rents for a two-bed home at the lowest end of the market in each local authority area in 2019-20, and compares this figure with maximum local housing allowance (LHA) rates for each area, which will be frozen from April 2016. The study shows that the monthly gap between private rents and LHA on two-bed homes in the cheapest areas of each authority will be significant in growth areas such as Cambridge (£529), Manchester (£240), Bristol (£236), Luton (£155) and Birmingham (£107). Read more on the Guardian website.

Rents: Regulation _ Parliamentary Written Answer

Ian Paisley: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will bring forward legislative proposals giving local authorities powers to implement rent controls.

Brandon Lewis: No. The latest Office for National Statistics figures show that private sector rents have actually fallen in real terms across England since 2010 (rents up 10.6 per cent from May 2010 to December 2014, compared to CPI inflation of 12.1 per cent). Indeed, regulated social rents have risen faster in recent years; average weekly rents rose by 25.4 per cent from 2008-09 to 2012-13 in the social rented sector, compared to 6.5 per cent in the private rented sector (DCLG, English Housing Survey: Headline Report, February 2014, p.19). The historical evidence is clear that rent controls resulted in the size of the private rented sector shrinking from 55 per cent of households in 1939 to just 8 per cent in the late 1980s. State-imposed price ceilings meant that many landlords could not afford to improve or maintain their homes, leading to worst conditions for tenants. Ultimately, the reduction in supply from such controls would push up rents and reduce choice for tenants. Read more on the Parliament website.

Private Rents 'Hit Record High'

Private sector rents have lifted to a new all-time average high of £761 a month as the peak season for tenants snapping up new homes gets under way, a major lettings network has reported. Rents saw a 2.4% increase in the 12 months to August across England and Wales, meaning they have edged £3 higher than a previous record set in October 2013 of £758 a month on average, according to LSL Property Services, which owns chains Your Move and Reeds Rains. The state of tenants' finances worsened as rents reached their new record levels. Read more on the Daily Mail website.