Housing crisis deepens as rental supply slumps by 31% in five years

The UK's rental supply has dropped 31% in five years, driving up rents outside London. Wales and the South West lead growth, while London rents fall. Explore the housing crisis and market trends.

New data reveals a significant long-term slump in the supply of rental properties across Britain, exacerbating the housing crisis.

According to the latest figures from Home, a website that tracks monthly lettings and sales market trends, the number of available rental properties dropped by 31% in just five years. In August 2019, there were 96,000 properties for rent, but by August 2024, that figure had plummeted to 66,000.

Rental supply crisis and rising rents

The shortage of rental properties has driven up rents, but the rate of national rental growth is being dampened by the sluggish performance in London. Across Britain, the annualised rental growth figure is just 1.1%, but this masks strong regional variations.

Wales leads the regional growth table, with rental prices increasing by 14.5% year-on-year.
South West England follows closely, with an annual rise of 11.7%.
Yorkshire and the North East also show double-digit growth, reflecting a strong demand for rental properties outside the capital.
In contrast, Greater London saw a year-on-year decline of -1.2% in rental prices. Boroughs like Bexley and Haringey experienced the sharpest falls, with annualised drops of 16.6% and 9.4%, respectively. The East and West Midlands also recorded rental decreases, with falls of -2.8% and -0.8%.

Sales market shows modest growth

While the rental market faces a supply crisis, the sales market is seeing slow but steady growth. Asking prices across England and Wales rose by 0.2% in the last month, marking the seventh consecutive monthly increase, with prices now up 1.2% compared to August 2023.

Wales, Scotland, and most English regions saw further price increases, with the exception of the North West and South East, where prices remained unchanged.

Unsold property stock reaches 10-year high

The unsold property stock in England and Wales also continues to climb, reaching a 10-year high for August. Nearly 6,000 additional properties were added to agents’ portfolios over the last month, bringing the total unsold stock to 494,837.

The combination of rising rental demand, stagnant supply, and increasing unsold properties in the sales market highlights the ongoing housing crisis facing the UK.