Tag Archives: child
Average rental prices in London reach over £1,400 a month
Rental values in London have risen by 4.67% since June 2015, with the average rental price for a property in the capital standing at £1,467 compared to £1,402 in the summer, the latest figures show. Greenwich saw the largest increase taking the average rent to £1,397 per month, according to the Rentify Property Index. The firm said that this could be due to the time of year when students are starting back at university. Other areas that experienced considerable rental uplifts include Brent, with average rents in the North West London borough growing by £201 to almost £1,500 per month. Next was Newham with an increase of £197 taking the average rent to £1,378 per calendar month, then Lewisham with an increase of £194 taking the average rent to £1,305 and Lambeth with an increase of £182 to an average rent of £1,617. Areas that saw a fall in rent included Wandsworth where the average rent fell by £33, and Kingston-upon-Thames, with the average rent in the area falling by almost £90 to £1,237. Homes in the City of London have also experienced what the firm described as an unprecedented dip in price, with the average monthly rent dropping £185 to £2,149. Although this can’t be considered a long term decline, the figures do highlight seasonality in the market, according to the report, which adds that the dip in costs could be in part attributed to the school calendar, with families moving to ensure they secure the best postcode possible for their child’s education during the summer months. The data also showed how strong rental demand is across the capital. Bexley proved to be the most popular area for property hunters with an average of 10 people viewing each home in the borough each day, whilst other outer London boroughs such as Enfield and Haringey, both seeing an average of 9.6 viewers per day, also generating huge interest. ‘High cost of rent in central London is continuing to drive people away to outer boroughs in search of affordable housing. This however means that these so called cheaper locations are seeing a remarkable rise in rent due to their popularity. They are hot on the heels with central London due to strong demand,’ said Rentify chief executive officer George Spencer. ‘Furthermore, the recent buy to let tax hike introduced by the Chancellor will further constrain supply as less people invest in property to rent, making life increasingly hard for Londoners,’ he added. Continue reading
Homes in good school areas in UK command over £30,000 more
Parents in parts of the UK are willing to pay a premium of £32,000 premiums to move to a property within a desirable school catchment area, new research has found. Almost a third of these parents had to change jobs in order to get their children into the desired school and one in four were forced to ditch their dream home and downsize, according to the study from Santander Mortgages. Overall some 26% of parents with children of a school age have either bought or rented a new property in order to secure an address within their desired school catchment area and paid on average an 18% premium or £32,127 to do so. Some 31% admitted that as a result they ended up moving to an area they did not like, a further 26% said they overstretched themselves, paying more for the property than they could realistically afford and 33% moved to a location that was far away from family or friends. However, the study suggests that the moves made by many of these families are only temporary, with just 22% planning to continue living in the area. Some 45% of those who moved to be within a particular catchment area said they had, or would, move straight back out once their child had secured a place, whilst a further 30% planned to wait until their child finished school. Amongst families who have moved to be within their desired catchment area, 40% said they had sold their previous property and purchased a new one within their chosen area, 41% said they purchased a second home in the catchment area, while 20% secured their desired address by renting a property. This trend looks set to continue as 61% of parents who expect to move home before their children leave school, said that catchment areas will have an impact on where they choose to live. A regional breakdown shows that there are significant variations in the overall proportion of parents moving to be within a catchment area and also in their decision as to whether they buy, rent or look to secure a second property. Overall the North East and London see the highest proportion of parents moving to secure an address within a specific catchment area at 46% whilst Wales has the lowest at 11%. The average premium paid by parents for a property in their desired school catchment area ranges from 8% in Yorkshire and Humberside, to 21% in Scotland and the North East. As a result of higher property prices, London has the highest value premium at £77,113 or 16%. Younger parents are the most likely to purchase or rent a new property to be within a certain catchment area with 46% of those aged 18 to 34 having done so, compared to just 18% of 35 to 54 year-olds. The age of the child also appears to have an impact as 33% of parents who have children aged between four… Continue reading
Catchment areas of good schools in UK attracting higher property rent premium
Competition for school places in some of the UK’s best educational establishments is affecting the private rental market with more homes near them being rented to families, new research suggests. Some 28% of properties rented around schools with outstanding ratings from school inspectors OFSTED went to families with children, up from 26% in 2014 and 9% in 2008 In London competition for school places means that for the first time over half of properties rented around the best schools go to families with children, according to the latest quarterly lettings index from Countrywide plc. The firm suggests that while this is a product of the significant increase in competition for school places, the growing number of families living in the private rented sector means more of them move both for work and their children’s education. While the figures in London are most marked for schools rated outstanding, the pressure on school places in the capital means there has been uplift in families with children renting in the area surrounding most schools. Given it is the address from which the school application is made in January that the application is assessed against, the summer months are when most families think about moving. Over half of families with children in the private rented sector move during June, July, August or September in time for the forthcoming academic year. Households with children moving into the area close to an outstanding school don’t move far, an average of just half a mile. This confirms the fine margins involved getting into school catchment areas. This distance is considerably shorter than the three miles the average households in the private rented sector moves, the report explains. As with house prices, tenants pay a premium to live close to a high performing school. Given tenants move more often than home owners, this premium tends to be smaller. In 2015 the average tenant living within a kilometre of a school rated outstanding paid 14% more than someone living more than a kilometre away. While the premium attached to one and two bedroom flats is almost negligible, tenants living in three or four bedroom houses pay an average of 16% more. Where catchment areas are particularly tightly defined, a house on one side of the road can be let for 15% to 20% more than an identical house on the other side. ‘There are 1.6 million families with children living in the private rented sector, 20% more than last year, which means school catchment areas are becoming increasingly relevant to the rental market,’ said David Fell, research analyst at Countrywide. ‘Many of these families are choosing to rent close to the school gates and in some cases parents are taking advantage of the flexibility of renting to move from the fringes of their preferred school’s catchment area to ensure their child’s entry,’ he pointed out. ‘The flexibility of renting can… Continue reading
