The cost of renting has slowed to its lowest annual increase since the coronavirus pandemic, leading campaign group Generation Rent to conclude that renters are stretched so thin they can’t afford any more.
Zoopla research shows trhe cost of new lets have risen by 2.8% year-on-year, the lowest rate of inflation since July 2021. However rental prices have risen by 21% in the past three years.
The average monthly rent now stands at £1,287 per month, a £35 annual increase.
Zoopla said the slowdown in the rate of rental growth is a result of weaker rental demand and growing affordability pressures, rather than an increase in supply.
Ben Twomey, chief executive at Generation Rent, said: “Unchecked cost of renting since the pandemic has stretched renters so thin that we simply can’t afford to pay any more.”
A Generation Rent survey found that its supporters spend 39% of their income on rent. The government’s definition of an affordable home is no higher than 30%.
Greg Tsuman, managing director for lettings, Martyn Gerrard Estate Agents, said: “It is a sad state of affairs when annual rent increases of 2.8% are being celebrated as a positive thing.
“The market has been in such a poor shape for so long that the rate of rent increases slowing is seen as a win. A 4-year low in rental increases is still a £32 increase each month for the average renter in London. We need to see rents falling soon because this situation is unsustainable.
“Unfortunately, these figures do not represent an end of an era for the rental market but a temporary reprieve. There is immense pressure in the rental market right now.
“With the Renters’ Rights Bill passing soon, landlords are continuing to exit the market to avoid becoming stuck. Thousands of tenants are receiving eviction notices and they are competing for a shrinking pool of housing, which can only see rental prices continue upwards.”