Against a backdrop of rising house prices how are rents changing?
Have been taking a look at rents and property prices in Uxbridge (UB8 postcode) and comparing them to my previous reviews of available property to buy and rent on the property portals to get a good picture of how these are changing and where the best value can be found.
This review doesn’t cover Houses of Multiple Occupancy (HMO’s).
Studio Flats
Remain a class of property in demand from tenants.
Prices for studios start at £125,000 for a cheaper one and go up to £150,000. Last year the range was £105,000 to £150,000. This change is mirrored in rents where the range has moved from £625pcm to £750pcm last year, to £675pcm to £750pcm this year. Average gross yields for studios are now 6.2%.
Studios offer the highest gross yield of all single let property types in our area.
One Bedroom Flats
Here the lowest rent you can find as a tenant has also moved along. Last year the rental range was between £825pcm to £1250pcm and this year we are seeing £895pcm to £1,195pcm. However prices on one beds have increased by £15,000 to £20,000 making for current gross yields of 5.6%. The cheaper property as is normal tend to have the higher yield at around 6.1%.
Two Bedroom Property
A two bed flat in Uxbridge would typically let for between £1,100pcm and £1,450pcm and cost around £280,000. Two bed houses typically cost £40,000 more. They typically come with the benefit of freehold. However they don’t tend to rent for more than flats or maisonettes, with the most expensive two bed houses currently letting for around £1,300pcm where available at the moment.
Yields vary around 5.4% for a two bed flat and lower for a house.
Three Bedroom Houses
An entry level three bed house in Uxbridge might cost £340,000 and let for £1,350pcm which makes for a decent return of 4.8%.
Three bed house prices are up by around £40,000 on last year and rents up by £100pcm at the lower end. To rent the cheapest available was £1,250pcm last year to £1,350pcm this year.
Summary
Comparing many of the rental levels to last year, rents have moved up at the entry price, improving landlords rent but there is probably more high quality property at the top end of the market available which has led to less increases at this level in the return for landlords. So the range of rents has decreased due to the rise in the cheapest rents.
Tenants demand remain strong for good quality affordable housing in Uxbridge.
