Tenants could be paying £2,269 in rent in the cost-of-living crisis

The average rent bill could rocket to hit £2,269 a month if prices rise in line with the hikes already being seen across other living costs, a specialist rental platform warns.

A market analysis from Ocasa shows that with the cost of living on the rise, there are lots of factors impacting the lives of people in the UK.

They point to the surging price of energy that has dominated headlines in recent months and shoppers wincing at the soaring cost of basic groceries.

However, the price of rent, has not yet matched the increasing costs seen in other areas with the average cost of a month’s rent in the UK rising by £98 over the past year, on average.

That’s an annual increase of 9.2%.

If rents increase at the same rate of other living costs

Ocasa has looked at what would happen to rent prices if they did increase at the same rate as other living costs and if they rose at the same price as energy – which has increased by 95.8% – then rents would be £2,269 per month.

The firm’s research shows that in London, the UK’s most expensive rental market, rents were £1,752 per month in 2021, so a 95.8% hike would bring the rent up to an eye-watering £3,808 per month.

In the South East, rents would rise from £1,139 to £2,422, and even in the UK’s most affordable rental market, the North East, rent would cost £1,192.

If rent rises matched the increase in grocery prices – which grew by 13.9% – rents would be £1,320, on average.

In London, tenants would pay £2,216 per month; in the South East rents would cost £1,409 and in the North East, the average rent would be £694.

There has also been a sharp rise in inflation rates, which is up 9.9% over the past year and this would see the national average rent being £1,274, while prices in London would be £2,138, in the South East rent would cost £1,359, while in the North East renters would pay £669.

‘Tenants haven’t felt the squeeze quite as badly’

Jack Godby, the sales and marketing director at Ocasa, said: “Compared to other cost of living increases, tenants haven’t felt the squeeze quite as badly when it comes to their rental bill.

“However, it can only be a matter of time before this area of life also strains household finances as landlords raise rents in order to compensate for their own cost increases in both their personal and professional lives.”

He added: “Many households who are already bracing for a very harsh winter are likely to be under even more strain before Spring 2023 and we expect that the cost of renting may well be yet another household outgoing driving this financial strain.”

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