Student rent continues to rise
Student rent continues to increase
Wednesday, 23, Apr 2008 03:34
The average weekly student rent in the UK is now £61.48 per week, according to the latest research.
This represents a 1.5 per cent increase on the figure recorded for April 2007, following a study of 44,000 properties in 76 cities across the UK.
Over the past four years the average student rent has risen 17 per cent, from £52.44 in 2004, according to AccommodationforStudents.com.
As might be expected, London saw the highest rental prices, with the average weekly rent standing at £102.85 a week - 67 per cent above the UK average.
Moreover, it is generally more expensive to rent student accommodation in the south of England; with Middlesex, Cambridge, Guildford, Surrey, Exeter, Oxford and Brighton all 20 per cent or more above the UK average.
St. Andrews in Scotland - where Price William studied during his time at university - is also a notable exception, with prices averaging £82.29 a week - 34 per cent above the UK average.
At the other end of scale Crewe has the cheapest rent for students in the UK, with the average weekly price standing at £40.33.
Following this, students in Middlesbrough will pay an average of £41.54 a week, with those in Stoke-on-Trent can expect to pay £42.04.
"Students are still accumulating large borrowings to subsidise their studies. The cost of accommodation is a critical factor in their choice of university," said
"Now, with the current UK economic climate, the biggest factor affecting the student lettings market is the fact mortgage rates have increased and 90-100 per cent mortgages are no longer available.
"Because of this, young professionals are finding it increasingly difficult to get on the property ladder and many landlords are accordingly transferring previous student rented accommodation to professional letting, putting student rented accommodation under pressure, particularly in some cities."
Some traditional English redbrick universities - including Liverpool (£50.52), Birmingham (£54.28), Manchester (£56.65), and Sheffield (£57.12) - remain below the UK average.
However others, like Leeds (£62.03), Nottingham (£61.60), and Newcastle (£58.90) are reflecting their increasing student popularity via increasing rents.
All three have shown rent increases well over twice the UK average of 1.5 per cent over the last year, Leeds going up by 6.5 per cent, according to AccommodationforStudents.
Chris O'Toole