Rents are now 4.2% higher than last year, according to the LSL index, with the average �25,000 deposit proving too much for hopeful buyers
The average rent rose by 0.4% in March as landlords enjoyed a surge in demand from would-be first-time buyers struggling to make a purchase, the LSL Property Services buy to let index has found.
The increase to about �685 a month marks the second month in a row that prices have risen. Rent is now 4.2% higher than this time last year and is at its most expensive since November 2010.
Landlords are benefitting from first-time buyers being forced to stay in rented accommodation as they struggle to save deposits. LSL says that despite higher loan-to-value mortgages coming on to the market, many young people simply cannot afford the average �25,000 deposits needed to get on the property ladder.
Liberal Democrat MP Stephen Gilbert has joined those struggling to save a deposit while paying rent, after admitting that despite earning nearly �66,000 a year he is unable to afford to buy a home in his Newquay constituency. The MP, elected last year, said that renting in the area was "verging on unaffordable".
Tenants in London have been hardest hit as rents have soared by 7.3% over the past year, while the rest of the south-east have been stung by a 6.7% increase.
The greatest monthly rises were felt in the east of England where rent was up by 2.2%, and the south-east where they rose by 1.7%. But LSL warns that if rents increase at their current pace they could hit an average of �1,050 a month in the capital by this time next year.
Despite Gilbert's claims that renting privately in the south-west was barely manageable, the region and Wales produced falls in rent of 2.4% and 1.5% respectively during the year. The biggest monthly decrease was also in the south-west where rent dropped by 1.3%. Tenants in Wales and Yorkshire and the Humber also benefitted from modest decreases.
This increase in rents and lower house prices mean income for landlords is up, with the average yield now 5%.
David Newnes, estate agency managing director of LSL Property Services, said landlords are seeing demand go from strength to strength: "Many would-be first-time buyers cannot afford the average �25,000 lenders require without substantial help from their parents, and as a result they are staying in rented accommodation for nearly a decade.
"The growing demand continues to outstrip supply and this is pushing rents upwards beyond the rate of inflation, and well above wage rises. At the current rate of increase the average rent will top �715 this time next year.
"London and the south-east are the two regions coping best with the economy in its present state, and are least likely to be affected by public sector job losses. It is unlikely that rent rises will fall away any time soon in these areas."
Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2011/apr/15/rents-rise-first-time-buyers-struggle-deposits
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