London’s young renters are the only people in Britain spending over half of their income on rent, according to new research
Londoners are spending the vast majority of their income on rent, according to new research.
The average cost of renting a one-bedroom home in London is £1,133 per month, which takes up nearly 60 per cent of the average under 30’s post-tax income, nearly 10 per cent over the national average.
Rents have increased by 27 per cent since 2007, outpacing a 16 per cent growth in incomes.
Read more: Rental supply fell in May as buy to let landlords fled the market
As pressure on affordability mounts, the number of privately rented homes with a spare room has fell by three per cent in the same period, suggesting that for many a spare room has become a luxury.
Despite this, across most parts of Great Britain renting is more affordable than it was eight years ago across most parts of Great Britain, according to research from Countrywide Lettings.
Read more: More than £12bn London homes lying empty – but which borough is the worst?
The average cost across the whole of the country of renting a one-bedroom home is £746 per month, which accounts for 48 per cent of the average of a young full-time worker.
Johnny Morris at Countrywide, said: "In most parts of Great Britain, rising incomes have softened the impact of increasing rents.
"But in London rents have risen much faster than wages, stretching affordability. Many tenants have adapted to rising prices by either moving to cheaper areas, further from the centre, or sharing.
"Stalling rental growth in the capital begs the question whether London’s rents have reached their affordability limits for now."