London rents on the rise

In its latest Rental Index Move with Us found that rents rose by 0.26% between week two and week four of the month.

The average advertised rental price now stands at around £2,182 per month in the capital with further improvements expected.

Average advertised rents in Great Britain currently stand at around £966 per month, following a 0.49% fall in April.

Robin King, director of Move with Us, said: “Overall, average advertised rents have not changed by a large amount this month.

“However recent data has demonstrated that the residential sales market is improving and media reports show that mortgages are more readily available which is likely to be bolstered by the government’s new Help to Buy scheme.

“These factors mean it is likely we will see an adjustment in the rental market and a move away from renting as purchasing property becomes more accessible.”

This is a fourth month of relative stability in the rental market with rents changing by no more than 1% between December 2012 and April 2013. This stability is also reflected regionally with average advertised rents changing by less than 1% in all but two regions.

Both the North East and East Anglia also saw advertised rents increase. East Anglia continued on a steady path of price growth with an increase of 0.13%.

The North East appears to have recovered from a four month fall in rents with a 2.02% increase in the latter part of April.

The total increase for the month in the region was 0.16%, as prices fell by 1.86% in the first two weeks.

Most regions saw average rental prices fall this month though the majority of these decreases were less than 1%.

Wales saw the most significant decline with the average price falling by £22 in April to £638 per month.

Average advertised rents also reported falls of 1.51% in the East Midlands reaching a low of £623 per month. In both regions these decreases continue a sustained trend of falling prices that started in December 2012.