Here's why Batley has seen the second highest rental growth in Britain

In Yorkshire rents have risen 0.8 per cent over the last quarter and 8.3 per cent up year on year with average rental yield for investors at 6.8 per cent.

The second hottest spot for rentals in Britain and topping the chart in God’s Own County at the moment is Batley where the average asking price for tents has risen from £707 in the first quarter of 2023 to £846 in the first quarter of 2024, bringing an annual rise of 19.7 per cent.

Ashraf Esat, director of Hunters Batley estate and lettings agency, says the ten minute train ride from Batley to Leeds is a big draw and, although rents in Batley have risen, they are still far less expensive than those in Leeds.

He adds that the pandemic created a big shift in the price of rents in Batley with a two-bedroom flat that was £350 per month now around £550 while a two-bedroom house once priced at £450 per month rocketed to £650/£700 with detached homes seeing the greatest rise from £550 to £950.

Mr Esat adds: “Batley is a great place to live and while rents are a lot higher than before the pandemic, they still offer good value when you compare them to rents in central Leeds and you are only a ten minute train ride away from the city centre.”

Meanwhile, average advertised rents in London have seen a more significant slowing in growth. The average rent in London has risen by just two pounds to a new record average of £2,633 per calendar month.

This means that average rents in the capital are now 5.3 per cent higher than last year, with rent growth steadily slowing since the peak of 16.1 per cent in the third quarter of 2022.

However, while the continued slowing in the pace of rent rises will be welcomed by tenants, prices are still at record levels.

Rightmove analysts say that although the balance of supply and demand is slowly improving from its peak, there are still nearly 50,000 rental properties needed to head back to the pre-pandemic level of rental supply.

The latest market statistics show that the number of rental properties available to tenants is 11 per cent higher than at this time last year, though still 26 per cent below 2019.

Similarly, the number of would-be tenants looking for a home to rent has eased by 17 per cent compared to last year but is still 54 per cent higher than pre-pandemic 2019.

Letting agents are still unable to meet the level of demand from tenants and are now fielding an average of 13 enquiries per rental property.

Whilst average rents are continuing to grow, reductions in rental prices are now at a five-year high for this time of year.

This suggests more landlords are having to reduce the advertised rent to meet the affordability of their local market.

Rightmove’s Director of Property Science Tim Bannister says: “The rental market is no longer at peak boiling point but it remains at a very hot simmer.

"Even with improvements to supply, we are nearly 50,000 properties behind the pre-pandemic market, is a reminder that the industry needs more quality rental homes.”