The current turmoil in the rental market shows no signs of slowing down with UK rents in the fourth quarter of 2022 hitting an all-time high, increasing 13% year-on-year, according to a new survey.

The flatshare site, SpareRoom, has revealed that for the first time ever room rents in Greater London exceeded £900.

But London isn’t the only place that has seen rents go up with all UK regions (bar Scotland) seeing a rise in average room rents.

The platform has now complied a list of the most and least affordable places to rent in the UK.

Matt Hutchinson, a director at SpareRoom, said: “Although demand has eased since the record peaks we saw in August and September, the combined effect of low supply and the cost-of-living crisis means rents have continued to rise.”

He added: “The last 12-months has seen rents across the UK hit record highs and, unless new supply comes into market over the coming months, it’s hard to see those rents come down meaningfully in 2023.

“In the meantime, we hope that this list of the most and least expensive areas will help the people who are looking to make their next move.”

Most and least affordable London postcodes

In London, the most affordable postcodes are found mainly in the South East and East regions. The cheapest areas to rent are Norwood (SE25) for £680, followed by Manor Park (E12) for £690, East Ham (E6) for £697 and Chingford (E4) for £698. 

Central and West London areas saw the highest room rents with West End/Soho (W1) being the highest at £1,475, followed Westminster/Belgravia/Pimlico (SW1) at £1,284, Bloomsbury/High Holborn (WC1) at £1,255 and Bayswater/Paddington (W2) for £1,214.

Outside of the capital

Outside of London, the most expensive places to rent in the fourth quarter of 2022 were were Kingston Upon Thames (£852), Twickenham (£824), Southall (£805) and Barnet at £772.

The top three cheapest areas to rent in the UK were all in the North of England: Burnley at £421, Barnsley at £422 and Huddersfield at £428.

A list of the top 10 most and least expensive areas both in the UK and the capital can be found below:

London

UK