7 disgraceful stats about renting in London

It is cheaper to commute from Madrid each day than rent in Camden Town

To envisage the absurdity of renting a home in London, sample these headlines we’ve run on LondonLovesBusiness.com

Would you pay £520 a month to live in a London flat with a shower under the bed?

Keen renter pays £10,000 up front to call dibs on London flat

Average monthly rents in London soar to £1,500

But renting in London is a whole lot worse. Dont believe us? We’ll let the stats below do the talking:

1. It is cheaper to commute from Madrid each day than rent in Camden Town

Yep, that’s right.

According to research by Labour mayoral candidate Tessa Jowell, renting a flat in Camden Town and working in Liverpool street will cost a Londoner £2,128 monthly or £25,532 yearly.

But if that same Londoner rented a flat in Madrid’s city centre and booked return flights from Madrid to Stansted from Monday to Thursday, he/she would end up forking out £1,725 a month or £20,708 a year.

2. London tenants spend 60% wages on rent

Londoners spend an eye-watering 60% of their gross earnings on renting a home.

According to figures by the government’s English Housing Survey, 16-24-year-olds are forced to pay 88% of their income on rent in the capital.

3. The average rent on a two-bedroom flat is £707 a week or £100 a day

Figures from property investment firm London Central Portfolio (LCP) highlight that the average rent on a two-bedroom flat in central London has hit a whopping £707 a week.

Average rental prices of one-bedroom flats, on the other hand, are now at £452 a week.

LCP CEO Naomi Heaton said: “The key dynamic in this marketplace remains location over size. The squeeze on rents during the credit crunch, as corporates underwent stringent belt tightening, has not relaxed meaning smaller properties remain the most popular among corporate tenants. The huge influx of international students, often living on their own, adds to this demand.”

4. London professionals are being forced to live “12 to a house”

According to Ealing Central and Acton MP Rupa Huq, London professionals are being forced to live “12 to a house”, thanks to the soaring rents.

In a Commons debate this month Huq said: “Renting is no longer just a transitory thing for those who are in their twenties. It’s becoming routine for people further up the age scale.

“Many in my constituency in their 30s on good money find themselves sometimes 12 to a house with shared sitting room and kitchen.

“At that age, ‘who stole my cheese?’ should not be a way of life.”

5. By 2025, more than half of people under 40 will be living in property owned by private landlords

Over half of 20 to 39-year-olds will be renting from private landlords by 2025, a recent research by PwC pointed out.

Economists working on the report said: “For 20-39 year olds, we would expect over half to be renting by 2025, implying a continuing rise in the size of ‘Generation Rent’.

“Increasing the supply of affordable housing in the long run, which the government has set as an objective, will require a range of measures, including further planning reform, action to address skills shortages in the housebuilding sector and enhanced financial incentives to build more homes”

6. Britons pay highest private rents in Europe

A study by British Housing Federation found that rents in the UK are the highest in Europe.

In countries like Germany and Holland, private rents are around 50% cheaper than in the UK.

David Orr, chief executive at the National Housing Federation, said: “British renters get a raw deal in comparison to their continental counterparts. Not only do they face crippling rents, but renters in the UK have almost no certainty about whether they will be able to stay in their home from one year to the next.”

7. One in three rented homes are “not fit to live in”

One in three British three homes do not meet the government’s decent home minimum standard, according to research by Citizens Advice.

In November 2014, the government body reported that it saw a 20% yearly increase in cases of renters facing eviction despite being up-to-date with rent.

Gillian Guy, CEO of Citizens Advice, said: “It’s hard to feel at home in the private rented sector. People can struggle to lead a normal life when their home is in a state of disrepair and they could be told to leave at any time. But many feel powerless to speak out.”