Hull and Sunderland have been named the most affordable cities in Britain for students renting in the private sector with average advertised rents of £804 per calendar month (pcm), according to new research by Rightmove.
The property platform’s analysis of more than 50 cities shows a sharp divide in rental costs depending on location. Carlisle ranks as the third cheapest at £828 pcm, while at the other end of the scale, St Albans is the priciest city outside London, with average rents of £2,359 pcm. Oxford (£2,093 pcm) and Brighton (£2,031 pcm) complete the top three most expensive.
Across Great Britain, the average advertised rent now stands at £1,565 pcm, meaning tenants in Hull or Sunderland are paying almost half the national average. In London, where demand for rental homes remains intense, average advertised rents have reached a record £2,712 pcm.
STRETCHED AFFORDABILITY
Even in the lowest-priced cities, affordability is being stretched. Rightmove said that eight of the ten cheapest cities have recorded rent increases of more than a third over the past five years.
The average rent for a two-bedroom flat across the country is £1,612 pcm, rising to £2,260 pcm for a four-bedroom house.
Colleen Babcock, property expert at Rightmove, said: “Moving to a new city or just out of the family home for the first time is an exciting experience for many students, but trying to find that first place to rent can be hard.”
The findings come as students across the country prepare to begin or return to university this month, many encountering the private rented sector for the first time against a backdrop of record-high rents and constrained affordability.
