While there is a significant focus on property prices and the amount people must pay to get on to the property ladder, there possibly isn’t as much focus when it comes to rental fees. This shouldn’t be the case. After all, the rental market is hugely significant for a growing number of people in the UK and there are concerns that rising rental fees will have a hugely negative impact on many people who have already been priced out of the property market. At Taylor Robinson, we know this is an issue that affects many of our clients, and we focus the national situation as well as the local situation in Crawley and Horsham.

In 2017, according to figures provided by Rightmove, the annual rate of increase in asking rents (across the country but excluding London) was 0.7%, and this was the lowest figure for this aspect of the rental market since 2014. This figure contrasts with current trends for the country, outside of London, with the following returns having been recorded:

  • 2015 – an increase of 3.7% with annual asking rents
  • 2016 – an increase of 3.0% with annual asking rents
  • 2017 – an increase of 0.7% with annual asking rents

However, asking rents in London rose by 1.2% compared to the figure at the end of 2016. This was perhaps a surprising figure as this was the first time in two years that London’s annual rate had been a positive figure.

Not many places experienced a fall in asking rents

When it comes to areas where the asking rent figure was down, the South East region and Yorkshire and the Humber were the only two regions which recorded a downturn in 2017. With respect to the area which recorded the highest increase, the North East witnessed rising rents of 3.3% compared to the 2016 figure.

With respect to levels of rental growth the highest figure outside of London was recorded in Farnham in Surrey, with 9% while Corby in Northamptonshire returned a figure of 8.2%. Of course, national averages are all well and good, but when it comes to rental or property market, people want to know about their own area, which is why we’ll look at the South East in more detail.

For the South East of England, the average asking price in Q3 of 2017 was £1,063 while in Q4 of 2017, the figure was £1,049. This represents a fall of 1.3% between the quarters. The average price in Q4 of 2016 was £1,058 which means that over the year, the change was -0.9%.

Crawley and Horsham offer rental opportunities in South East England

According to Zoopla, the current average asking rents in Crawley stands at £1,012 per calendar month. For a one-bedroom property, the average asking rent is £757, for a two-bedroom property, the average asking rent is £1,060 and for a three-bedroom property, the average asking rent stands at £1,257. The average asking rents for a four and five-bedroom property in Crawley are, respectively, £1,528 and £550. The small number of five-bedroom properties available on the rental market is a factor in the outlier fee and of course, the bare statistics tell you nothing about the circumstances of the property involved.

With respect to Horsham, and again according to Zoopla, the current average asking rent stands at £1,369 per calendar month. For a one-bedroom property, the average asking rent is £752, for a two-bedroom property, the average asking rent is £1,068 and for a three-bedroom property, the average asking rent stands at £1,707. The average asking rents for a four and five-bedroom property in Crawley are, respectively, £2,751 and £2,199.

While many people believe that rising rental fees is good news for landlords, the reality of the situation is not as straightforward. While rental fees are on the up, the costs associated with being a landlord are also increasing. There is also an increasing range of regulations for landlords to deal with, while many professionals in the buy-to-let sector believe that the Government is penalising them in order to assist first-time buyers step on to the property ladder.

If you are keen to be fully informed about the rental market, both nationally and here in Crawley and Horsham, please get in touch. At Taylor Robinson, we are rental market specialists and no matter what move you want to take next, we are the company who will help you out.