Average monthly rents for London two-bedroom homes will top £2,000 by the end of September according to London-based residential real estate agency Portico.
According to its London Rental Market Report Q1 2016, the average rent for a two-bedroom home in London now stands at £1,867 per calendar month (pcm), a two percent increase from the beginning of the year.
Given that tenancies which start in September are typically 11 percent higher than tenancies that start in December, Portico has predicted that two-bed rents will reach £2,008 pcm by September this year. And with two people sharing the cost of a two-bedroom home – i.e. £1,004 pcm – this shared rent figure will consume 46 percent of the average London monthly net salary.
The Portico London Rental Market Report Q1 2016 highlighted that Ealing in West London has seen the largest increase in rent – at 6.9 percent – with rents for a two-bed home now at £1,825 pcm. This was followed by Richmond-upon-Thames with a 6 percent increase (average two-bed rent now at £1,934 pcm) and Lambeth, with a 5.8 percent increase (average two-bed rent now at £2,051 pcm).
However average rents have reduced for two-bed homes across seven London boroughs, including two boroughs in Prime Central London. Rents in both Westminster and Kensington & Chelsea have reduced by 5.7 percent and 1.1 percent, respectively.
Bromley has experienced the greatest decline in monthly rents for all properties, with a reduction of 6.3 percent during Q1 followed by Hillingdon at 4.4 percent and Kingston-upon-Thames at 4.1 percent.
Robert Nichols, Managing Director, Portico, commenting on this latest report, said: “The majority of London boroughs are seeing rent increases anywhere from one to almost seven percent. For landlords who may be feeling under particular pressure given government announcements, this may provide some welcome news.
“But our latest report also shows some significant rent drops. Bromley is down over six percent with Kingston and Hillingdon also experiencing four percent reductions. All in all, these declines won’t prevent the average two-bed rent tipping over the £2,000 mark later this year.”
The Portico London Rental Market Report Q1 2016 is published every quarter and focuses on the two-bedroom market as a major indicator of London rental market health.
