08 Nov Property expert predicts rental surges will now slow as cost of living leads to boost in housing stock.
RENT rises could finally be set to slow down because more housing stock is becoming available due to the cost of living crisis, a property expert has warned.
A report last week revealed rents are outstripping inflation in more than a quarter of Britain’s local authority areas.
According to Zoopla, prices have rocketed by at least 10.1pc in 102 council districts as tenants face a crippling lack of supply.
But Jonathan Rolande, from the National Association of Property Buyers, believes the surge could finally be about to end.
He said: “I think increases will now slow to around 6% per annum. Why? Well the cost of living crisis is leading to more stock becoming available. Plus new homes that don’t sell are being let, and many more people are now sharing and lodging rather than living in single households.
“In terms of the regions that will continue to see the highest rents, London and Manchester have risen sharply in recent months and they in theory, have the furthest to fall. We will likely continue to see large cities leading the field when it comes to increases – quite the opposite of 2020 when there was an exodus to the seaside and country.
According to last week’s Zoopla survey, three London boroughs have recorded rent rises at more than double the rate of the consumer prices index. The City of London recorded the largest jump in rents, with prices surging by 24.8pc in the last year. In Kensington & Chelsea, Westminster and Tower Hamlets, rents of new newly let properties climbed by 22.1pc, 21.4pc and 20pc respectively.
Tenants are most under pressure in the capital. All of the top 10 areas that recorded the largest jumps in rents in the 12 months to August were in London. In Islington, Hammersmith & Fulham, Camden and Newham, rent growth was in excess of 18pc.
Outside London, the steepest rent growth was in Salford, Greater Manchester, where prices jumped by 16.3pc. In neighbouring Manchester, rents climbed by 15.7pc. Another hotspot was Wales, with rents in Denbighshire and the Vale of Glamorgan rising by 16.2pc and 15.4pc respectively.
