Rents in the private sector in London have risen to a record high, official figures reveal.
They increased by two per cent in the year to April in the capital to reach an average of £2,290 a month, deepening the housing crisis.
They went up in 28 out of 32 boroughs, with Newham seeing the biggest jump of 7.1 per cent.
The highest average rent, at £3,597, was in Kensington and Chelsea, with the lowest in Bexley, £1,525.
Many Londoners are paying exorbitant rents for properties often in poor condition, sometimes suffering from mould, damp and poor insulation.
Average monthly rents are now more than £2,000 in 14 boroughs, according to the Office for National Statistics, causing more housing cost misery for Londoners, including many young people.
Boroughs where rents are above this level are Camden, Ealing, Hackney, Hammersmith and Fulham, Haringey, Islington, Kensington and Chelsea, Lambeth, Merton, Richmond, Southwark, Tower Hamlets, Wandsworth and Westminster.
The biggest yearly rises were in Newham, Bexley (6.8 per cent), Lambeth (6.5 per cent), Barking and Dagenham (6.1 per cent) and Richmond (5.6 per cent).
Borough |
Average monthly rent in April |
Yearly increase - percentage |
Newham |
£1,918 |
7.1 |
Bexley |
£1,525 |
6.8 |
Lambeth |
£2,529 |
6.5 |
Barking and Dagenham |
£1,688 |
6.1 |
Richmond |
£2,307 |
5.6 |
Havering |
£1,565 |
4.8 |
Greenwich |
£1,949 |
4.3 |
Barnet |
£1,931 |
4.2 |
Wandsworth |
£2,599 |
4.1 |
Islington |
£2,811 |
4 |
Source: ONS |
In some areas, rents are falling, including in Camden (-4 per cent), Brent (-3.7 per cent) Westminster (-3.6 per cent), as well as in Kensington and Chelsea (-1.8 per cent).
But overall the capital is in the grip of a growing rent squeeze.
Shadow housing secretary Sir James Cleverly, who is the frontrunner to be the Tory candidate for Mayor of London, said: “Sadiq Khan is plumbing depths of housebuilding failure not seen since the Second World War.
“In Labour-run London, renting has become more unaffordable than ever.”
Liberal Democrat London spokesman Luke Taylor, MP for Sutton and Cheam, stressed: “Renters across London are being asked to stomach surging rents alongside stagnant wages and a thinning job market.
“If this continues, our city will create a lost generation of priced-out people who would otherwise have staffed its services, kept its economy afloat and defined its cultural scene.”
The Housing Ministry stressed it had brought in the Renters’ Rights Act to protect renters against excessive rent increases.
A spokesman added: “The Act also stops rent from rising more than once a year, bans rental bidding wars and shields renters signing a new tenancy with a one-month cap on rent in advance.
“We’re also ramping up housebuilding in London to tackle supply shortages and bring down rising costs.”
Across the country, monthly private rent inflation increased from 3.4 per cent in the year to March to 3.5 per cent in April to reach an average level of £1,381, the ONS figures showed.
Sarah Coles, head of personal finance at AJ Bell, said: “Rent rises sped up fractionally in April. We’re a long way from the runaway rents of recent years, but we could be on the cusp of more rises.
“Costs are increasing for landlords. Higher mortgage rates, a tougher tax environment and new legislation are all having an impact.”
She stressed that many Londoners are caught in a “Catch 22” as rents go up.
“The higher that rents rise, the better off you can be by buying, but the harder it is to spare the cash to put aside for a deposit,” she explained.
