London room rents already rising just two months into 2019

Demand for room rentals in London is so high their average charge has risen two per cent in 2019 already, claims a flat share website.

Ideal Flatmate claims this comes on top of a 13 per cent rise over the course of last year, rising from an average £781 to £855 per month.

“With a continued lack of suitable stock and a reduction in buy to let investors, this figure has already climbed to £902 a month barely two months into 2019” says the site.

Its analysis puts Westminster as the most expensive borough at an average of £1,045 a month, followed by Camden at £999; at a more detailed level the location of Nine Elms near Vauxhall that currently tops the table with an average monthly rent of £2,123.

Other areas to see some of the highest rents for just a single room are Covent Garden, Upper Clapton, South Kensington, Knightsbridge, Church End, Bayswater, St James’s, North Finchley and Millbank – all at £1,200 or above.

The cheapest are North Woolwich at £350 with Abbey Wood, Manor Park, Hither Green and West Norwood also some of the lowest.

“Despite room sharing remaining the most affordable way of finding a place to live in London, it too is seeing prices increase as the capital’s rental market continues to strain under the pressure of a supply and demand imbalance” says Ideal Flatmate co-founder Tom Gatzen.

“We’re currently seeing the price of room rentals in London increase at a rate of at least one per cent a month on average which is pretty significant for those already struggling to afford the overall cost of living in the capital.

“This cost increase has largely been driven by a reduction in the number of landlords and letting agents with rooms to rent as a result of the stamp duty shake-up, changes to tax thresholds and the impending ban on letting fees. 

“Unless more is done to address this, we will continue to see the cost of renting lift across the board with the capital’s tenants ultimately the ones paying the price.”