Paragon: Copeland most affordable UK rental location

Copeland is the most affordable place to rent in England, with 14% of annual salaries spent on rent, according to Paragon’s new Rental Affordability Index.

In Copeland, the average annual rent of £6,101, equates to just 14% of the average annual salary, which is  £43,463.

Allerdale is the second most affordable location to privately rent in England, where annual rental prices equated to 17.8% of the average salary.

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At the other end of the scale, all of the least affordable local authorities to rent were located within London.

Kensington & Chelsea topped the list, where the average rent was 98.1% of the average resident’s salary, whilst Westminster was 91.3%.

Across England, the average salary of £31,220 equated to 32.8% of the average rent.

Regionally, the most affordable regions were all located in the north of England, with the North West coming out as the most affordable at 23.7%, followed by the North East (24%) and Yorkshire & Humber (24.3).

London (51.3%), the South East (36.1%) and East of England (32.4%) were the least affordable.

By property type across the country, the average four-bed home equated to 56.1% of salary to rent, followed by three-bed (38.7%), two-bed (31.3%), one-bed (25.2%), studio (17.4%) and a single room (17.4%).

Richard Rowntree, managing director of mortgages at Paragon Bank, said: “These figures paint a revealing picture, with the most affordable rental locations mainly concentrated in northern areas.

“House prices are typically lower in these regions, meaning that rents tend to be lower.

“At the other end of the scale, it is not surprising to see London as home to the least affordable locations and that is why London has the highest proportion of house sharers in the UK.”