Mayor requires lease controls as non-public rents in London forecast to surpass £2,700 per thirty days subsequent 12 months

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has as we speak printed stunning new Metropolis Corridor evaluation revealing unchecked non-public rents in London may soar to upwards of £2,700 pcm subsequent 12 months.

The Mayor is renewing his longstanding plea to Authorities to guard London’s 2.7m renters and urgently introduce a two-year lease freeze because the capital’s housing disaster worsens.

The Mayor has persistently been on the facet of London’s renters and has repeatedly warned of the real-life penalties of unaffordable non-public rents, coupled with the spiralling cost-of-living. He just lately wrote to Ministers warning of a wave of repossessions within the capital.

Sadiq has been clear that report excessive rents are a symptom of the housing disaster and he’s urging Authorities to behave now to repair London’s damaged housing system. The long-term supply of extra reasonably priced housing is important and should be met with a severe funding dedication from the Authorities.

An absence of motion from Authorities now signifies that Londoners are liable to better monetary hardship, as new Metropolis Corridor figures present that unchecked non-public rents may attain over £2,700 per thirty days within the capital subsequent 12 months – up from the present common lease of £2,567, in line with Rightmove.

London’s sky-high rents have created a state of affairs the place 49 per cent of kids in non-public rented houses stay in poverty. If a two-year lease freeze have been to be launched renters may save £3,374 on common – with £887 saved within the first 12 months alone and £2,487 within the second 12 months. The whole saving is £386 greater than when this evaluation was final performed by Metropolis Corridor in March 2022.

London’s renters are going through a number of crises from escalating rents, insecure tenancies and unsafe houses. The Mayor’s name on Ministers to right away implement long-promised renters reform laws and to take motion to make rents extra reasonably priced for Londoners has to date fallen on deaf ears.

Sadiq has and can proceed to name on Authorities to ship the £4.9 billion that’s wanted annually to construct the reasonably priced housing that’s so desperately wanted, and push for the powers to freeze rents to guard Londoners proper now.

The Mayor as we speak met with Londoner Alexandra Rodriguez-Romero at her rented house in Sutton, whose story of hovering rents and housing insecurity is unfortunately turning into extra commonplace. Alexandra acquired a no-fault eviction discover from her former landlord and was informed she may solely keep if she paid £450 extra in lease every month.

Following this, Alexandra moved into her present two-bedroom house the place she pays £1750 a month in lease – £400 greater than she was beforehand paying – and has now been informed her new landlord is considering promoting the property. Alexandra, like many different Londoners, now fears her lease will go up even additional or that she’ll face eviction as soon as once more.

Whereas the Mayor presently doesn’t have the powers to cut back non-public rents and hold them at reasonably priced ranges, he has been on the forefront of delivering report ranges of recent housing within the capital. Lately, Metropolis Corridor has accomplished extra houses of every type than at any time for the reason that Nineteen Thirties, constructed extra council houses than at any time for the reason that Nineteen Seventies, and exceeded its formidable goal of constructing 116,000 new genuinely reasonably priced houses within the capital. But the housing disaster has been a long time within the making, and given provide won’t meet demand for a while, measures to assist renters are essential.

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, mentioned: “These figures reveal the clearest image but of why lease controls are so obligatory. Non-public renters make up almost a 3rd of everybody residing within the capital, however they’re being persistently let down by a Authorities that refuses to hear and take pressing motion to guard them from even better monetary hardship.

“Londoners re-elected me on a manifesto pledge to push for the powers to manage rents and I can’t cease advocating for this lifeline on their behalf. I am delivering on my promise to construct a greater, fairer and extra affluent London by constructing extra reasonably priced houses within the capital and offering important assist to Londoners by the cost-of-living disaster. It’s about time the Authorities did the identical.”

Ben Twomey, Chief Govt of Era Hire, mentioned: “Spiralling rents are driving households into poverty and on to the streets. That’s the reason we assist the Mayor’s name for devolved powers to take motion to stabilise rents. The typical London renter is already placing 40 % of their wages straight into their landlord’s pocket, and this example reveals no signal of enhancing by itself.

“Controlling rents doesn’t deal with the shortage of houses that permits landlords to cost a lot on new tenancies. To deal with that we additionally want a giant enhance within the provide of social and reasonably priced houses, and the Mayor is true to name for funding to construct as a lot of this as potential in London. With out motion, Londoners will proceed to face sky-high rents that are forcing the likes of nurses and lecturers out of town and hollowing out our communities.”