Black Country tenants facing higher rents year-on-year, new data shows

Office for National Statistics figures show the median rent per property paid by tenants across 900 homes in Wolverhampton in the year to March was £650, up four per cent from £625 in the same period in 2022.

And it has risen from £575 in the year to March in 2020, before the Covid pandemic.

Further ONS figures show rents in England increased by 4.9 per cent in the 12 months to May – the highest rise since records began in January 2006.

In London there was a 5.1 per cent increase - the third-highest since 2006.

Daniel Brown from Dixons Estate Agents, which has 16 branches across the West Midlands including in Wolverhampton and Willenhall, said the combination of an interest rate rise and landlords wanting to sell their properties but not being able to had squeezed the rental market.

He said: "We are seeing a similar story across all our branches whether that is the ones in Wolverhampton, Lichfield or Birmingham, and that is that there is a lack of rental properties and more people are after them because they can't afford to buy.

"There has been a large influx in the last year from abroad, people coming to work in the NHS for example, they all need somewhere to live and rental property is at a premium whether that be one-bedroom flats or two- or three-bedroom houses.

"Rental rates have increased as well with the cost of living rising since Covid and maintenance on properties being partly passed onto tenants. None of this makes it easy for people looking to rent property."

Nationally, housing charity Shelter said thousands of people are "battling to stay in their homes and face the threat of homelessness" as they attempt to keep up with rents rocketing to record levels.

Chief executive Polly Neate said: "Given private renters already pay the highest housing costs of anyone, and have for a long time, they’re feeling the pain of the current cost of living crisis more than most."

"We desperately need more genuinely affordable social homes with stable rents that are tied to local incomes and not an unstable private market."

A UK Government spokesperson said the Renters Reform Bill will "deliver a fairer deal for renters in England".

They said: "The bill will empower tenants to challenge unjustified rent increases and protect them as we keep our commitment to ban ‘no fault’ evictions.

"Housebuilding is a priority and we are committed to building 300,000 homes every year to create a more sustainable and affordable housing market."