The latest figures show that York is becoming an ever-more unaffordable city to live in.
According to the new Zoopla Rental Market Report, rents in York have shot up by nearly ten per cent in a year.
And a shortage of supply of rental properties is blamed.
The figures show:
- York’s average rent per calendar month is now £975
- Rents have risen by 9.8% year on year
- And it takes just 11 days for a York property to be rented after going on the market.
And rent now takes an average of 36% of a York single earner’s income. The government deems a property affordable if a household spends 30% or less of their income on rent.
Across Yorkshire and the Humber, annual rental growth is at 10.2%. The average rent in the region is £697 per calendar month – equating to over a quarter (26.3%) of a single earner’s average income.
Compared to York, rental properties are more affordable elsewhere in Yorkshire.
In Leeds, the average rent is £830, which takes 31.3% of a single earner’s average income; in Sheffield the figures are £711 and 26.7%.
The Zoopla survey says a chronic shortage of rental properties is causing the hikes.
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It adds: “There is no real prospect of significantly improved rental supply in the near term as private landlords continue to sell off homes due to tax and regulatory changes and renters decide to stay in their current homes.”
Richard Donnell, Zoopla’s executive director, said: “What the rental market needs to combat these challenges is more new homes for rent.
“Greater regulation has seen less new investment and a small but growing number of landlords selling up, meaning the rental market has stopped growing since 2016.
“There is a risk that more regulation to improve standards or potential new measures to dampen rental growth, as proposed in Scotland, may compound the supply problem which is pushing rents up in the first place.
“Policymakers need to tread a careful path between protecting consumers and ensuring a decent supply of homes for rent.”