The upfront cost of renting has still increased in most regions of England despite the five-week deposit cap, research suggests.

Analysis of mydeposits and ONS data compared the current initial cost of securing a rental home based on one month’s rent plus a deposit of five weeks now and before the introduction of the tenant fee ban and deposit cap in June of last year.

On a national level, the cap seems to have had the desired impact, with the initial cost of renting in England as a whole down 2% annually to £1,897.

However, this is mainly due to a 5% annual drop in London to £3,699 this year.

The rest of the regions of England were either flat or registered an increase.

This was led by the south west where the initial cost increased by 4% annually to £1,841, according to the research.

Initial cost of renting based on average month’s rent plus a five month rental deposit
Location 2019 2020 Annual change
ENGLAND £1,931 £1,897 -2%
SOUTH WEST £1,764 £1,841 4%
NORTH WEST £1,373 £1,415 3%
WEST MIDLANDS £1,465 £1,510 3%
EAST MIDLANDS £1,402 £1,438 3%
SOUTH EAST £2,205 £2,248 2%
YORKSHIRE AND THE HUMBER £1,370 £1,382 1%
NORTH EAST £1,217 £1,220 0%
EAST OF ENGLAND £1,942 £1,940 0%
LONDON £3,886 £3,699 -5%

Tenants in some locations could still be paying up to a quarter more annually.

The upfront cost in Corby was found to be up 24% to £1,566, while Exeter and Charnwood also showed a 23% increase.

The largest decline was in York, where the upfront cost for tenants has fallen 18% annually to £1,913.

Largest annual increases in initial rental cost in England
Location 2019 2020 Annual change
Corby £1,260 £1,566 24%
Exeter £2,196 £2,702 23%
Charnwood £1,224 £1,501 23%
Oxford £3,074 £3,573 16%
Newcastle-under-Lyme £1,307 £1,490 14%
South Oxfordshire £2,403 £2,732 14%
West Oxfordshire £2,203 £2,493 13%
Chiltern £2,896 £3,274 13%
Liverpool £1,123 £1,253 12%
Doncaster £1,060 £1,181 11%
Rushcliffe £1,591 £1,757 10%
Haringey £3,404 £3,755 10%
Bristol, City of £2,408 £2,644 10%
Lambeth £3,940 £4,293 9%
Lincoln £1,280 £1,391 9%

 

Largest annual decrease in initial rental cost in England
Location 2019 2020 Annual change
York £2,327 £1,913 -18%
Vale of White Horse £2,554 £2,282 -11%
Elmbridge £3,996 £3,638 -9%
Waverley £2,828 £2,612 -8%
Daventry £1,820 £1,692 -7%
Wycombe £2,459 £2,295 -7%
Kingston upon Thames £3,141 £2,939 -6%
Kensington and Chelsea £7,218 £6,802 -6%
Three Rivers £3,051 £2,880 -6%
Hillingdon £2,853 £2,700 -5%
Camden £5,461 £5,180 -5%
Bath and North East Somerset £2,898 £2,752 -5%
Brent £3,551 £3,380 -5%
Woking £2,900 £2,763 -5%
Canterbury £1,964 £1,877 -4%

The research was conducted by mydeposits’ sister brand Ome, the deposit replacement scheme.

Its co-founder Matthew Hooker said: “There’s no doubt that the tenant fee ban has had an impact on the affordability of renting.

“However, while some have seen the cost of securing a rental property drop, tenants in many parts of the national rental market have still seen sharp increases.

“This increase will have been driven mainly by a reduction of rental accommodation to meet demand as many buy-to-let landlords reconsider their investments due to a string of government changes to the sector.

“Particularly in the current climate, we must work across the sector as a whole to ensure both landlords and tenants are looked after and there is enough stock available to service this demand.”