Rents have fallen in just five parts of Britain over the past year as a typical new tenant now pays £1,200 more annually for a home
- Rents across Britain are up 9.4% in a year, according to Rightmove
- Tenants are faced with an undersupply of homes and difficult market conditions
- Burnley, Lancashire, has seen demand rents fall by 7% compared to 2022
According to data from Rightmove, there are only five parts of Britain where asking rents for tenants have fallen over the past year.
Rents have risen an average of 9.4 percent over the past 12 months as the buy-to-rent market struggles with inflation and rising interest rates.
It means new tenants are paying just over £100 a month more than this time last year.
But a few areas are bucking the trend and rental costs have fallen. Burnley, Lancashire, saw the biggest drop in asking rents with prices falling by an average of 7 per cent to £620 a month, excluding data for This is Money shows.
Higher costs: There are only five areas in Britain where rents have fallen over the past year
Tenants in Hartlepool, County Durham have seen monthly costs fall by 6 per cent from £588 in 2022 to an average of £553 this year.
The real estate website analyzed hundreds of local areas and asked for rent changes compared to last year.
Tim Bannister, of Rightmove, said: ‘Although demand for new tenants has fallen in a small number of areas across Britain compared to last year, it is more likely that new tenants will see rents rise in their local area.
“While we see signs that supply is improving, there are still not enough homes to meet the demand of tenants who want to move.”
Bristol’s Redland saw rental prices fall by 4 per cent from March 2022 to the same month this year.
However, tenants still face high costs in the area as the average rent is now £1,558 – the most expensive of the areas that have fallen.
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At Ladywood in Birmingham and Sale in Greater Manchester, both asking rents fell by 2 per cent, bringing average monthly costs to £1,162 and £1,294 respectively.
Looking back over five years, the five areas have all seen an increase, with rental prices rising the most in Sale – a 42 percent increase since 2018.
The situation has been exacerbated by a shortage of rental housing.
Britain has a housing shortage of around 4.3 million homes that have never been built, according to a study by the Center for Cities.
All in all, the center estimates it would take at least half a century to make up for the shortfall, even if the government met its current target of 300,000 homes per year.
At the same time, landlords, who provide tenants with much-needed living space, are leaving the market hit by higher mortgage rates, the disappearance of tax benefits and increased regulatory pressure.
The Mail revealed that the housing shortage is forcing renters to live in Airbnbs for up to a year. There are a third fewer rental properties available compared to 18 months ago.