What is now costs to rent across Britain as prices hit 'record-high'

Rents are soaring across Britain with the average price outside of London now hitting a new record-high. The pace of growth in rent prices remains significantly higher than before the coronavirus pandemic, Rightmove said.

The average monthly rent being asked outside London is now £1,316, which is around 7 percent higher than a year earlier, according to Rightmove’s analysis covering the month of May.

In London, the average advertised rent is £2,652 per month, which is 4 percent higher than last year. Rightmove said the pace of growth in rental prices has eased from its peak of 12 percent two years ago, but it remains significantly higher than the “more normal” level of around 2 percent per year seen before the coronavirus pandemic.

READ MORE: Dream £4.3m home on wealthy Greater Manchester road which you can't view on Google Maps

It added that an improvement in the balance between supply and demand in London has contributed to a slowing of rental price growth. By contrast, Scotland is currently the hardest hit by supply and demand imbalances, Rightmove said.

Tim Bannister, a property expert at Rightmove, said: “We’ve been talking about the imbalance between supply and demand in the rental market for a long time now, so it’s easy to forget that there was a time before the pandemic where rental price growth was more stable.”

He added: “The next government should be prioritising an improvement to the planning process, an acceleration of house building, and encouraging more supply into the rental market.”

Nathan Emerson, CEO of property professionals’ body Propertymark, said: “Propertymark has long argued that the private rental sector needs more houses to stabilise rental prices but there is a myriad of other factors that can contribute towards making the market more attractive for both investors and tenants.

“With a General Election coming this week, Propertymark would like to see the next government reform the tax system so that more investors can be persuaded to invest in the private rental sector and lower rents for tenants in the long term.

“Whilst we support a greater supply of houses, there has to be a sensible deliverable programme mindful of protecting the green belt wherever possible.”

Here are average rents across Britain and the annual increases, according to Rightmove:

North East

Average rent: £894

Annual increase: 11 percent

West Midlands

Average rent: £1,180

Annual increase: 10 percent

Scotland

Average rent: £1,067

Annual increase: 9 percent

East of England

Average rent: £1,597

Annual increase: 8 percent

North West

Average rent: £1,146

Annual increase: 8 percent

Yorkshire and the Humber

Average rent: £1,022

Annual increase: 8 percent

South West

Average rent: £1,425

Annual increase: 7 percent

East Midlands

Average rent: £1,150

Annual increase: 7 percent

South East

Average rent: £1,836

Annual increase: 6 percent

London

Average rent: £2,652

Annual increase: 4 percent

Wales

Average rent: £1,065

Annual increase: 4 percent