The latest Rental Index from Goodlord has shown a month-on-month increase in rents during January, with the rental cost of a property now up by over 7% year-on-year. Void periods lengthened during January. However, voids have shortened compared to this time last year.
After a robust December for the market, January proved no different with rents increasing by 1% during the month. This means the average monthly rent for a property in England is now £1,154 per month – 7% higher year-on-year compared to the £1,076 average recorded in January 2023.
Looking at the year-on-year data for January 2024 vs. January 2023, the biggest increase in rents has been seen in the North West. Here, rents are up by 9% compared to the same time last year.
The smallest difference is found in the East Midlands, although rents in the region have still increased by 5.5% year-on-year.
Over the last month, the biggest change in rents was recorded in Greater London. The region saw an almost 2% increase in rents during January, with average prices in the capital now £1,968.
Between August and October of 2023, rents in London surpassed the £2,000 threshold for three months in a row. Despite dropping below this threshold over the winter, the region remains the most expensive place to rent in England by a sizeable margin.
Only one region – the North East – recorded a month-on-month decrease in rents of more than 0.5% during January. Rents decreased in the region by 1.5%; down from £853 to £839. The region remains the cheapest place to rent in England.
Void periods – the average length of time a property is vacant between tenancies – lengthened during January; moving from 20 days in December to 22 days over the last month.
Despite this increase, voids are down when comparing year-on-year trends. In January 2023, void lengths sat at 23 days on average across England.
The longest void periods can currently be found in the East Midlands (28 days) and the shortest in Greater London (18 days). [See full table below.]
William Reeve, CEO at Goodlord, commented: “We don’t expect to see huge market movements in January; the pace of new tenancies tends to take a few weeks to pick up post-Christmas. So to see this uptick in month-on-month rents – as well as the consistently sizeable year-on-year rises – is a sign that the market isn’t cooling down anytime soon.
“In addition, with a new burst of activity on the sales side of the housing market, we could start to see some interesting knock-off effects on the lettings side in the coming months which could bring additional turbulence.”
