20-somethings spend third of income on rent
Although the cost of renting has fallen, it’s still a sizeable expense,
TENANTS in their 20s are facing spending around a third of their pre-tax incomes on private rent typically, according to recent analysis.
Across Britain generally, the average 21-to-29-year-old now spends 34% of their pre-tax income on the typical £566 cost of renting a room in a house share.
This is an improvement compared with 39% on average in 2017, estate and letting agents Hamptons International found, largely due to income growth.
Its analysis of 20 major cities also suggested that
Brighton, with its large student population, is the least affordable city to rent a room, accounting for 35% of a 20-something tenant’s income. London was in second place (34%), followed by Glasgow (33%).
Sheffield was identified as the most affordable city on the list, with room rents accounting for 25% of a tenant’s income on average. Aneisha Beveridge, head of research at Hamptons International, said that those wanting to live alone would have to pay a premium for the privilege, paying 31% more on average to rent a one-bedroom home rather than renting a room in a house share. Aneisha added “Tenants in their 20s spend a third of their pre-tax income on room rents in Great Britain.
“Yet the cost of trading up to rent a one-bed would take up nearly half of their earnings.” Hamptons International used its own figures and Office for National Statistics (ONS) data to make the findings. The percentages of pre-tax income taken up by renting were found to be lower in many cities than the average of 34%. Hamptons said reasons for this could include tenants in larger cities often having higher incomes, and so the proportion of their income taken up by rent is lower.