Rents rise at a slower pace across England and Wales in October

Average rent in England in Wales increased by 2.4% year on year in October, led by growth in the East of England where rents are rising the fastest, the latest index shows. Overall rents grew in most regions taking the average rent to £845 per calendar month with London and the North East seeing rents fall by 1%, according to the Your Move index. The North East is the cheapest place to rent a home with average rents of £535 while the highest rents are in London with an average of £1,276. Rents in the East of England, which contains many rural areas, commuter towns and major cities such as Cambridge and Norwich, increased by 6% in the last year taking the average rent to £887. Other areas posting strong price increases were the North West with a rise of 3.1% to £633 per month and the East Midlands up 3.2% to £648. The index report also shows that yields achieved by property investors stabilised in October, following a period of pressure on landlords. Your Move found that the typical yield in every surveyed region remained flat between September and October. This meant the average yield across England and Wales remained at 4.4% this month. However, when compared with 12 months ago, properties in every region are generating a smaller return. Indeed a year ago the average was 4.8% and properties located in northern regions continue to offer better returns than other areas. In October the average property in the North East had a yield of 5.1% higher than any other area. The North West was the only other region to post a similar return, it had a yield rate of 5%. At the other end of the scale, London properties delivered the smallest percentage returns to landlords. The typical property in the capital city generated a yield of 3.2% in October. ‘Rental market growth has slowed. While rents in most areas have continued to rise, it has been at a slower pace than we had been used to in recent years,’ said Martyn Alderton, national lettings director at Your Move and Reeds Rains.