Conservatives’ failure on housing sees West Midlands facing biggest jump in rent prices in the country
In Coventry, average rents shot up by 19.1% in just one year
Renters in the West Midlands are now bearing the brunt of the housing crisis, with private rentals in the region rising faster than anywhere else in the country.
Research from Rightmove reveals that average rents in the West Midlands shot up 10.3% from last year. In London, the recorded jump was 5.3%.
The rental crisis is particularly acute in Coventry, with average private rents increasing by 19.5% in just one year.
Prices have continued to reach record-breaking highs across the UK. The average advertised rent of new properties coming onto the market has reached a 17th consecutive record, and average advertised rents outside of London rise to a new record of £1,291 per calendar month (pcm).
Housebuilding in the West Midlands has not kept pace with demand. Just 46 new social homes have been built in the region since the Conservative Mayor Andy Street was elected in 2017.
The Conservative Party has also recently come under fire for watering down long-promised rights and protections for private renters in the Renters Reform Bill, with their manifesto promise to abolish “no-fault evictions” up in the air.
Preet Kaur Gill, MP for Birmingham Edgbaston, said:
“In our region, we have seen rents sky-rocketing under the Conservatives. The Tories have failed on housebuilding and protecting the rights of private renters.
"If the Conservative Party won’t back down to their unruly backbenchers and end up watering down the rights and protections they promised to renters in 2019, a Labour government will finish the job and definitively abolish no-fault evictions.
“Labour will introduce a powerful new Private Renters Charter to make renting fairer, more secure, and more affordable, through higher-quality and properly regulated Private Rented Sector, and we will build 1.5 million homes with the biggest boost to affordable, social and council housing in a generation.”
ENDS
Notes:
Rental Price Tracker | Property blog (rightmove.co.uk) – https://www.rightmove.co.uk/news/rental-price-tracker
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