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Wales sees largest rental growth in the UK
This article is an external press release originally published on the Landlord News website, which has now been migrated to the Just Landlords blog.
Rents throughout England and Wales increased in all bar two of the eight regions analysed by the latest Your Move England & Wales Buy to Let Index during February
This was led by increases in Wales, where rents grew by an average of 7.7% year-on-year to February to hit £593 per month. Despite this, Wales remains one of the cheapest places to rent.
Rental Costs
The North East and Yorkshire and the Humber were found to be the only regions in the report with cheaper rents than Wales, with average rents of £545pcm and £566pcm respectively.
In terms of rental growth, the East and South East of England led the way, with rents in these regions rising by 5.6% and 3.4%. Average rents in the East of England currently stand at £868 per month, while in the South, this figure rises slightly to £878pcm.
Valerie Bannister, Letting Director at Your Move, said: ‘Areas in the South East and East of England have traditionally offered much better value than the capital and this has tempted many Londoners to look further afield for rental properties.’[1]
Capital Pains
In London, rents continued to fall, with the city the only region surveyed to see rents slide both month-on-month and year-on-year.
The average rental property in London was let for £1,280pcm in February 2017-1% lower than at the same period one year ago.
Continuing, Bannister noted: ‘The dramatic rent increases in London have now slowed as people look outside the capital in order to meet their housing aspirations. Renters in London could be reaching the limits of their affordability as prices dropped back 1% in the last year. This will be one to watch as the year progresses.’[1]
Wales sees largest rental growth in the UK
Falls
London was not the only region to see rents slip year-on-year. In the South West prices fell by 1.5% in the last 12 months to reach £662pcm.
Taking England and Wales as a whole, the average rent stood at £798 in February. This was the same as in January, but was down from the £811 seen at the end of 2016.
In terms of yields, the report found that the average was 4.1% in February. This is down on the 4.9% seen at the same period last year.
Unsurprisingly, places with higher house prices command the smallest yields. It is not a surprise then to see that the average yield in London was only 3.2%, lower than in any other part of the country.
On the other hand, properties in the North East saw the largest yields, returning an average of 5.3% in the last month.
[1] https://www.landlordtoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2017/3/wales-sees-rents-rise-faster-than-anywhere-else-in-the-uk
