The east of England has seen an annual rent rise of 10.2 per cent, the strongest growth of any region in over five years, acording to the latest Buy-to-Let index from estate agents YourMove and Reed Rains.
London saw the second highest rise with rents 4.9 per cent above levels in February 2014.
The Buy-to-Let index shows the average rent across England and Wales is 3.1 per cent higher than February last year. The average residential rents in England and Wales now stand at £766 per month, compared with £763 in January 2015 and £743 in February last year. In the east of England, rents have gone up to £787 in February 2015 compared with £714 a year ago.
“With growth gathering around, renters are moving to areas that allow them to commute into the capital,” said Adrian Gill, director of Your Move and Reed Rains, adding, “rents are rising in line with the salaries of these new tenants.”
The north west (-0.3 per cent) and north east (-0.4 per cent) were the only regions to see a year-on-year drop in rents, while prices in the West Midlands and south west remained stable compared to last year.
Meanwhile, the gross rental yields in England and Wales have dropped by 0.2 percentage points from February 2014 and currently stand at 5 per cent as of February 2015, according to the index.
“Yields have steadied near the 5.0 per cent mark and we’re seeing a reciprocal stability in total annual return as property prices stabilise,” Mr. Gill said.
The index also shows that tenant finances worsened with 7.6 per cent of all rent in arrears in February 2015, compared with 6.9 per cent a year ago.
