Seven areas see above-inflation rent rises in past year
The average rent price for a two-bedroom home has risen above inflationary levels in seven areas in Scotland, new figures have shown.
In the year up to the end of september, statistics from the scottish Government have shown the average rent shave risen in 17 out of the 18 regions of scotland, with the highest rise in South Lanarkshire (10.3 per cent).
Compared to the average inflation rate in the UK over the past year – 7.6 per cent – six other areas saw above-inflation increases; Forth Valley (8.7 per cent), North Lanarkshire (8.3 percent ), west dunbartonshire (8.3 percent ), East Dunbartonshire(8.2 percent ), dundee and Angus (8 per cent) and Greater Glasgow (7.7 per cent).
In total, Scotland’s average rent rose by 6.7 per cent across the country. The figures display the private rented landscape before the Scottish Government’ s emergency legislation enacted to tackle the cost of-living crisis and its impact on the rental sector.
The Cost of Living (Tenant Protection) Bill froze rents and placed a moratorium on evictions until at least the end of March, with the option to extend the legislation for two further six-month periods.
Tenants rights minister Patrickharvi es aid the figures were “yet more evidence” of the need to bring rent down in Scotland. “That is why we took urgent action to introduce emergency legislation to protect renters,” he said. “Our Cost of Living (Tenant Protection) Act is providing immediate protection to many tenants who may have faced in-tenancy rent increases during the cost-of-living crisis."
The Lothian region, which contains Edinburgh, has the highest average rents in the country at £1,006 per month, followed by Greater Glasgow at £858. Dumfries and Galloway’ s average rent for a two bedroom home was the lowest in the country at £480, followed by the ayrshire region sat £493.
The figures also gauged the changes in rents since 2010, with Glasgow rents rising cumulatively by 52.3 per cent and Lothian’s by 51.5 per cent – above the cumulative inflation rate of 33.7 per cent.
Forth Valley, Fife and East Dunbartonshire also showed an above inflation increase during that time.
Rents in Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire (3.1 per cent) and the Ayrshires (6.1 per cent) saw the lowest average increase in the past 12 years.