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Thursday 27 June 2019

Rents rise to the highest on record following the tenant fees act

Propertymark has published its latest private rented sector report which found that 45% of lettings agents witnessed rent increases in the lead up to the Tenant Fee Act coming into force.  Year on year this is reported as being up 61% from 2018 and is the highest figure that Propertymark has ever recorded.

The report also finds that the supply of private rented properties has remained relatively consistent Nationally with some regional variation, whilst demand from tenants has increased, pointing to some supply constraint emerging.

The Propertymark report comes at the same time that it is reported in the Guardian, that first time buyers now need to earn on average £54,000 to purchase a typical UK property.  That is a rise of 9% since 2016, with Zoopla commenting that it largely reflects an increase property prices.

Outside of London, Oxford and Cambridge require the highest household income of £69,000 and £72,000 respectively with Zoopla stating average house prices of £407,000 in Oxford and £422,000 in Cambridge respectively.  Of 20 Cities reported Liverpool was the most affordable.

With the income threshold for first time buyers rising, and private rented properties failing to match the increase in demand, it would seem likely that rents will continue to rise over the coming months, creating a real squeeze for young couples and first time buyers.