Rents in England's capital, London, declined by *** percent annually as of January 2025. Nevertheless, many boroughs recorded growing rental prices, with Bromley and Croydon observing double-digit growth. Across the region, Croydon, Barking, Dagenham, and Havering ranked as some of the most affordable areas to rent. As shown by the Index of Private Housing Rental Prices, rents in the UK have soared since the COVID-19 pandemic.

Between 2008 and 2024, the average weekly rent for private renters in England has shown a significant increase. In the 2009, the average rent was 153 British pounds, and by 2024, it had risen to 237 British pounds. Excluding London, the average rent started at 130 British pounds in 2009 and reached 191 British pounds in 2024, demonstrating a similar upward trend but at a lower rate compared to the overall average in England. Rental households in England Renting is common in England. Nearly one in five households occupied a dwelling that was privately rented in 2024. While the majority of households in the country live in an owner-occupied home, this percentage has declined since the early 2000s. Meanwhile, the share of households occupying a private rental has doubled over the past decade. This shows a growing rental sector and a shift in tenure trends in the country. Buying vs renting costs For a long time, the average monthly costs of buying a home were lower than renting. In 2021, housing costs started to increase steeply, closely followed by rental costs. This resulted in the gap nearly closing in 2023. This trend can also be observed through the house price to rent ratio - an index that follows the development of house prices relative to rents, with 2015 as a baseline year. Between 2015 and 2022, the ratio grew steadily, indicating that property prices rise faster than rents. However, with rental growth accelerating and catching up with property prices in 2022, the index declined notably.

The average agreed rent for new tenancies in the UK ranged from *** British pounds to ***** British pounds, depending on the region. On average, renters outside of London paid ***** British pounds, whereas in London, this figure amounted to ***** British pounds. Rents have been on the rise for many years, but the period after the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated this trend. Since 2015, the average rent in the UK increased by about ** percent, with about half of that gain achieved in the period after the pandemic. Why have UK rents increased so much? One of the main reasons driving up rental prices is the declining affordability of homeownership. Historically, house prices grew faster than rents, making renting more financially feasible than buying. In 2022, when the house price to rent ratio index peaked, house prices had outgrown rents by nearly ** percent since 2015. As house prices peaked in 2022, home buying slowed, exacerbating demand for rental properties and leading to soaring rental prices. How expensive is too expensive? Although there is no official requirement about the proportion of income spent on rent for it to be considered affordable, a popular rule is that rent should not exceed more than ** percent of income. In 2024, most renters in the UK exceeded that threshold, with the southern regions significantly more likely to spend upward of ** percent of their income on rent. Rental affordability has sparked a move away from the capital to other regions in the UK, such as the South East (Brighton and Southampton), the West Midlands (Birmingham) and the North West (Liverpool, Manchester, Blackpool and Preston).

In January 2025, the average monthly rent in Greater London reached 2,227 British pounds, confirming its position as the most expensive area for private tenants. Rental prices across England stood at 1,375 British pounds, while the average for Great Britain was recorded at 1,332 British pounds. The North East remains the most affordable region, with rents at 710 British pounds. According to the UK Price Index of Private Rents (PIPR), rental growth has accelerated since 2021, with the cost of rental properties rising by nearly nine percent annually in January 2025.

It can be seen that the largest prime rent for office properties in London West End was found in the districts of St James's and Mayfair at that time, both with a prime rent of 120 British pounds per square foot as of the third quarter of 2020. Prime rents in most West End districts did not change between 2019 and 2020, except in Victoria and King's Cross. In 2021, rents in most London districts remained unchanged.

Median monthly rental prices for the private rental market in England by bedroom category, region and administrative area, calculated using data from the Valuation Office Agency and Office for National Statistics.

In 2023, the most expensive residential rental market in Europe was London (inner) with rental costs of approximately **** euros per square meter. Dublin and Paris followed with rental costs of **** and **** euros per square meter. Rents increased across most markets - a trend that could also be observed in the housing market. How much does an apartment cost in different European cities? Renting a furnished studio apartment in some of the leading cities in Europe can cost anywhere between *** euros monthly (Budapest) and ***** euros (Amsterdam) per month. For afurnished one-bedroom apartment in Paris, France, one may be expected to pay on average ***** euros monthly. Which countries have the most affordable housing? The house price to rent ratio is an indicator of the affordability of owning housing over renting across European countries and is calculated as the nominal house prices divided by a rent price index. The higher the ratio, the more the gap between house prices and rental rates has widened since 2015 when the index base was 100. As of the fourth quarter of 2021, Finland, Italy, and Belgium had the lowest house price to rent ratio, meaning that buying a house was most affordable there compared to renting.

This statistic displays the cost of 'small shed' secondary industrial warehouse space per square foot in the United Kingdom (UK) as of July 2021, by city. The price per square foot of smaller industrial warehousing was more expensive, in general than that of larger warehousing. Other factors that could affect pricing included location, proximity to major road systems, key population areas, price of developing land and staff costs. Prices for secondary small shed real estate in the United Kingdom (excluding London) as of July 2021 varied from 16 British pounds in Borehamwood to 2.75 British pounds in Belfast.

The cost of rent for office space in London is the highest in Europe. In the fourth quarter of 2023, the West End had average rents per square foot of *** British pounds. The average annual rent in London for prime office space was substantially higher than in any other European market. Prime yields For commercial real estate investors, prime yields in London averaged **** percent in 2023. As compared to the rest of the United Kingdom, yields for prime office space in London were notably lower. Commercial investments Office real estate, which comes under the broader term of commercial real estate, traditionally accounts for the lion's share of commercial real estate investments. In recent years, however, this share has been gradually declining. Despite this trend, the UK is one of the leading office real estate investment markets in Europe.

14% of White British households rented their home privately in the 2 years from April 2021 to May 2023 – the lowest percentage out of all ethnic groups.

The prime property rental real estate market in Outer London is expected to see an overall increase in rental rates during the ********* period between 2024 and 2028, according to a May 2024 forecast. Over the ********* period, the cumulative prime rental growth is forecast at **** percent. Nationwide, residential rents have soared since 2021, with the annual rental growth peaking at over **** percent in **********.

In the five-year period between 2024 and 2028, the prime residential rent for existing properties in Greater London is expected to increase by over 19 percent. The highest percentage change is expected to occur in 2024, when rents are to rise by 5.5 percent. In the UK. rental growth has accelerated notably since 2021, with March 2024 experiencing a decade-high annual percentage growth. The trend reflects the complex interplay between housing affordability, mortgage rates, and supply of rental homes, as the UK housing market navigates a period of transition.

70% of White British households owned their own homes – the highest percentage out of all ethnic groups.

This statistic displays the prime headline costs of warehouse rent across European cities as of the first half of 2021 in euros, per square meter per month. In this case, according to the source, prime warehouse locations have been categorized as spaces that are deemed to be at the top open-market tier of rent up to ************** square meters. The warehouse rents included spaces that are of grade A quality in the best locations in the market, with up to ** percent of the space dedicated to offices and between * and 10-meter ceiling height.

London soars in price
Due to its central location and capabilities of worldwide distribution, warehouse space in London had the highest monthly price at **** euros per square meter, as of the first half of 2021. At the other end of the table was the Polish city of Łódź with prime headline rents of *** euros per square meter per month.

UK prime warehouse rents
The price per square foot of smaller industrial warehousing was more expensive than that of larger warehousing. Other factors that could affect pricing included location, proximity to major road systems, key population areas, price of developing land and staff costs. Prices for prime small shed real estate in the United Kingdom (excluding London) as of the first half of 2021 varied from ** British pounds in Borehamwood to five British pounds in Belfast. Inside of London, prime rental costs can reach as much as ** British pounds per square foot.

In the first quarter of 2025, London West End - Bond Street was the most expensive location for prime high street rents in the UK, with prices reaching 2,500 British pounds per square foot. The West End was ranked ahead of London City, which came in third. In Manchester, the annual costs of rental per square foot of prime retail real estate amounted to 235 British pounds. Retail warehouses Retail warehouses typically range from 50,000 to hundreds of thousands of square feet. They are used for keeping and distributing inventory. Retail warehouses include loading docks, truck doors and large parking lots; also, they may contain a limited amount of office space. Prime retail warehouse properties belong to the wider category of industrial property, along with other real estate types, such as distribution buildings, showroom facilities, manufacturing buildings, cold storage facilities, telecom or data hosting centers, "flex" buildings denoting more than one industrial or commercial facility housed in the same building, and finally R&D buildings. Prime yields of high street retail across Europe Retail real estate prime yields in Europe were the lowest in Zurich, Switzerland, and the highest in Bucharest, Romania in 2025. As could be expected, larger cities in Europe tended to produce lower yields, due to the lower risk associated with these markets. Locations with lower yields tend to have steady occupancy rates and rental growth.

The average monthly home rental payment in the United Kingdom (UK) increased steadily since 2008, reaching 1, 258 British pounds in December 2023. In comparison, the average home buying costs amounted to 1,231 British Pounds that year, meaning that homeowners saved 27 British pounds monthly from the difference.

Prime locations for shopping centers include main streets and city centers of European cities, and factors such as the main flow of customers, the amount of space to handle the sales volume expected, as well as the direct competition and neighbors all have a great impact on projected sales. Specifically, space requirements must be carefully tailored to usage requirements, as rent typically proves to be high.

Rental prices of prime shopping centers real estate in Europe

According to the data presented, the most expensive retail space in shopping centers was rented out in Frankfurt, where on average prices were 280 euros per square meter per month as of June 2021. In comparison, the most expensive cities for high street retail were London and Paris, where monthly prime rents were close to 2,000 euros per square meter.

Coronavirus and commercial real estate

Among the many impacts of the coronavirus (COVID-19) are the drop in foot traffic and sales at high street shops and shopping centers due to the lockdown and social distancing measures, but also the increase of e-commerce. Shopping out of the convenience of your own home increases the focus on the importance of logistical warehousing real estate.

Amsterdam is set to maintain its position as Europe's most expensive city for apartment rentals in 2025, with median costs reaching 2,500 euros per month for a furnished one-bedroom unit. This figure is double the rent in Prague and significantly higher than other major European capitals like Paris, Berlin, and Madrid. The stark difference in rental costs across European cities reflects broader economic trends, housing policies, and the complex interplay between supply and demand in urban centers. Factors driving rental costs across Europe The disparity in rental prices across European cities can be attributed to various factors. In countries like Switzerland, Germany, and Austria, a higher proportion of the population lives in rental housing. This trend contributes to increased demand and potentially higher living costs in these nations. Conversely, many Eastern and Southern European countries have homeownership rates exceeding 90 percent, which may help keep rental prices lower in those regions. Housing affordability and market dynamics The relationship between housing prices and rental rates varies significantly across Europe. As of 2024, countries like Turkey, Iceland, Portugal, and Hungary had the highest house price to rent ratio indices. This indicates a widening gap between property values and rental costs since 2015. The affordability of homeownership versus renting differs greatly among European nations, with some countries experiencing rapid increases in property values that outpace rental growth. These market dynamics influence rental costs and contribute to the diverse rental landscape observed across European cities.