Leeds saw the greatest increase in room rents of all UK cities in both the year to the first quarter (Q1) of 2019 and since the previous quarter, according to the latest Room Rental Index from ideal flatmate.
While London – unsurprisingly – remained the most expensive UK city to rent a room, with the average price rising to £745 per month, Leeds recorded the greatest increase in room rents.
ideal flatmate’s index looks at the cost of renting a room across the UK’s major cities. It found that Leeds recorded the highest growth in average room rents both year-on-year and on the previous quarter.
The firm analysed the cost of thousands of spare rooms listed on its platform, looking at the differing cost of renting across each major UK city and London borough, and how this has changed on an annual and quarterly basis.
The Room Rental Index for Q1 found that the average room rent price in the UK was £535 per month, which is up by 11% on Q1 2018.
Following London, Glasgow was the second most expensive UK city to rent a room, at an average price of £588 a month. Bournemouth (£575), Cambridge (£562) and Leeds (£548) were close behind.
While only ranking as the fifth most expensive room rents, Leeds tops the table for both quarterly and yearly growth, with prices up by an average of 32% and 50% respectively.
Tom Gatzen, the Co-Founder of ideal flatmate, comments: “A new year, but a similar story where the UK rental market is concerned, with the cost of renting continuing to climb as a result of the imbalance between high demand and insufficient stock levels.
“This trend is almost certain to persist over the coming year, and the impending tenant fee bancould see this growth spike further, as rental costs are used to recoup lost revenue.”