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According to recent data, renters in London spend 35% of their income on rent, making it the most unaffordable city for renting.
According to the most recent data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), the middle value for rental prices in London was £1,450 for the fiscal year spanning 1 April 2021 to 31 March 2022.
This makes it the only region above the ONS’ affordability threshold of 30 per cent, where a property is deemed affordable if a household spends the the equivalent of 30 per cent or less of their income on rent.
Rents in London that are priced lower are equal to nearly half of the income of households with lower incomes, at 46 percent.
London is the sole area that exceeds the affordability threshold. The median rent of £1,450 in London is equal to 35% of the median income.
The median rent in Yorkshire and the Humber is 22.8% of the monthly household income, making it the least expensive region in England.
The map displays the median rent and cost of living in different regions of England.
The UK’s least affordable country is England, where the median rent is 26.1% of the monthly income of £3,050, equal to £795.
On the other hand, Wales has the lowest cost of living, with a median rent that is 23.4% of the household income for private renters (£560 in rent compared to a monthly income of £2,390).
The median rent in Northern Ireland was slightly higher at 24.7% (£650 rent compared to an income of £2,635).
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) reports that lower-income households in London are paying 46% of their income towards rent. This suggests that rental prices in the city are relatively affordable for lower-income individuals.
Last week, the ONS released a separate report indicating that private rental tenants in the UK saw a 5.7% increase in payments over the 12 months leading up to September 2023, compared to a revised 5.6% increase in the 12 months leading up to August 2023.
Over the course of 12 months leading up to September 2023, there was a 5.6% increase in annual private rental prices in England, a 6.9% increase in Wales, and a 6% increase in Scotland.
In the 12 months leading up to September 2023, London experienced the largest increase in private rental prices, with a growth of 6.2 percent. In contrast, the North East had the smallest increase at 4.7 percent.
Source: independent.co.uk
