London leads the way with rent rises

England’s rents are on the rise and London is leading the way, one rental index reveals.

According to Goodlord, rents in the capital hit a high for 2023 last month as rents steadily increased in most regions.

However, renters in the South West saw their rents fall.

The index also reveals that voids either remained the same or rose slightly across England – some areas have seen a four-day increase.

The average rent price in England

The firm says that the average rent price in England was £1,103 in April – a 1.16% increase on March’s figure and an 8.98% year-on-year increase.

Oli Sherlock, Goodlord’s director of insurance, said: “After a steady start to the year – with barely any significant change at all between February-March – we’re seeing movements in the rental sector.

“Rents continue to slowly and steadily rise, which is a pattern we would typically expect to see during this time of year as more contracts come up for renewal.”

He added: “As we head towards the summer months, we will be keeping a close eye on void periods as more and more tenants look for new homes.”

Rents in the capital

The platform says that until recently, rents in the capital had been falling or rising by less than 1% per month – but April saw a 2.28% rise with rents increasing by more than £40.

The data shows year-on-year, rents in London are now 11.4% higher than they were in 2022.

The East Midlands and North East also saw a considerable jump in rent prices, rising by 3.51% and 2.27% respectively in these areas.

The rental index also shows that there were small rent rises in the West Midlands and South East of 0.22% and 0.68% respectively.

The South West is the only area of the country where rents decreased, with a -1.6% drop in average rent prices.

Rent prices in the South West fell sharply in October 2022 and have been decreasing steadily ever since.

Voids on the rise

Goodlord also highlights that the average void period for landlords either stayed the same or rose in every region.

The biggest increases in the number of void days came in the South West and the North West, which both saw jumps from 18 to 22 days – an increase of 22.2%.

Void days in the South East and North East remained the same at 18 and 17 respectively.

England’s average void period grew slightly from 18 to 19 days in April – that’s a 0% year-on-year increase, suggesting April’s void average is consistent with seasonal trends.

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