The UK rental market is showing signs of stabilising after a chaotic few years, as rent hikes slow across the country.
According toย SpareRoomโsย Q4 2024 Rental Index, London is the only UK region where rents fell, with rents declining for the fourth consecutive quarter.
In Q4 2024, the average room rent in London decreased by 2%, from ยฃ1,015 in Q4 2023 to ยฃ993, markingย the most significant drop in London rents since Q1 2021.
The most expensive London postcode to rent in is SW3 at ยฃ1,488 (-9% YOY) followed by SW1 at ยฃ1,244 (with an annual decrease of 13% YOY).
Average UK room rents rose by just 1% year-on-year from ยฃ738 to ยฃ774 – the smallest increase seen in 2024ย –ย offering someย relief to renters who faced higher increases throughout 2024.
Outside of the capital, the most expensive towns/cities to rent a room in include Twickenham (ยฃ928), Kingston-upon-Thames (ยฃ920), and Epsom (ยฃ855). Interestingly Edinburgh no longer sits in this list, however during festival season it was ranking as the most expensive place to rent in the UK outside London.
At the other end of the spectrum, Bootle remains the cheapest town to rent a room, with an average rent of ยฃ447, closely followed by Barnsley (ยฃ465) and Bradford (ยฃ473).
Whilst rents continue to increase, no UK region has seen increases above 5%, with London being the only region where rents fell in Q4. The North West saw the largest increase, with rents rising by 5% (ยฃ608), followed by East Anglia and the South West both at 3% respectively (ยฃ669 and ยฃ665).
Overall, looking at the data year-on-year, the news is looking more positive for renters as the market begins to show gradual stabilisation at the end of 2024, offering some much-needed relief to renters facing affordability challenges.
Matt Hutchinson, Director at SpareRoom, said, โThe past few years have been incredibly tough for renters, not just in London but across the whole of the UK. With average rents falling in the Capital and increases slow across the country, hopefully thereโs finally some light at the end of the tunnel. However, thereโs still a long way to go before we can call rents genuinely affordable.
Our hope is that this cooling in the market, coupled with the traditional January increase in supply as cash strapped homeowners take in lodgers, will give renters some confidence that the market is slowly but surely turning itself around.โ
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