Rents rise in January for first time
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Average rents rose in January for the first time on record, according to the latest buy-to-let index from LSL Property Services.
The average rent in England and Wales increased by 0.1% between December and January to reach £712 per month.
This represents a year-on-year rise of 4.3%, higher than December’s year-on-year rise of 4%.
Rents rose the fastest on a monthly basis in the West Midlands and the South West, where they increased by 1.8% and 1.5% respectively.
Rents rose by 0.8% in London, where they have only fallen once in the past 13 months.
However, rents fell in four regions, with the biggest declines seen in the East of England and Wales, where they fell by 1.7% and 1.5%.
In the last 12 months rents have risen in all regions of England and Wales but one, the North East, where they fell by 0.7% year-on-year in January.
The largest annual increases were in London where rents rose by 6.3%.
David Brown, commercial director at LSL Property Services, says: “The rental market burst back into life unseasonably early in January, with tenants on the move trying to take advantage of what is usually a quieter period for the rental market.
“The depth of the underlying demand sustained a higher level of competition for rental property during the Christmas period, preventing more severe falls in rents than we’d normally see during the period. In January, activity has already moved up a gear in many parts of the UK, pushing rents up once more in a small, but significant rise.”
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