Renting Londoners who want to start a family face a 'harsh reality' as housing costs spiral

Property Partner research shines light on high cost of moving up rental ladder to start family.

UK housing — Stepping up to a family home for renters in London is becoming impossible for many as housing costs soar beyond what is affordable iStock

Londoners who rent and want to start a family face a "harsh reality" because of the city's rapid increase in housing costs, according to research by Property Partner.

The property crowdsourcing platform said the average London rent on a three bedroom house, £2,460, would eat into almost 56% of the combined monthly salary of a couple who work full-time and take home the median earnings — even before any other costs, such as childcare. Over a year, rent would cost £29,520 of the couple's income.

Even in the cheapest borough, Bexley, the average monthly rent on a three-bed house, £1,311, consumes nearly 30% of a median-earning couple's annual income. Over a year, that's £15,732. The research is based on data from Zoopla and the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

"Those unable to buy but hoping to start a family and move up the rental ladder may just be able to make ends meet in outer London boroughs," said Dan Gandesha, CEO of Property Partner. "But the harsh reality is that they'll be forced to bring up their children in a flat rather than a house.

"Although everyone knows Kensington and Chelsea, and Westminster, are totally out of reach on an average London salary, the surprise comes with Camden and Islington too. The age of the so-called second-stepper renter has not arrived. In fact at this rate, it looks like it may never come.

"Another sobering thought is that our research assumes both partners are in full-time employment and earning the average London salary. The figures do not take into account that if a couple have one or two children, the costs of childcare and household bills would make meeting the monthly rent unachievable."

Rents and house prices have risen sharply in London amid a serious housing shortage in the city. Around half the 50,000 new units needed a year are currently being delivered.

Borough	Average rent for 1 bed flat	Rent as a % of combined salary for 1 bed flat	Average rent for 2 bed flat	Rent as a % of combined salary for 2 bed flat	Average rent for 3 bed house	Rent as a % of combined salary for 3 bed house
Bexley	£753	17.05%	£1,052	23.81%	£1,311	29.68%
Havering	£882	19.97%	£1,132	25.63%	£1,417	32.08%
Sutton	£906	20.51%	£1,203	27.23%	£1,776	40.20%
Barking and Dagenham	£951	21.53%	£1,205	27.28%	£1,484	33.59%
Bromley	£885	20.03%	£1,292	29.25%	£1,569	35.52%
Croydon	£981	22.21%	£1,293	29.27%	£1,598	36.17%
Redbridge	£965	21.85%	£1,320	29.88%	£1,667	37.74%
Waltham Forest	£1,063	24.06%	£1,337	30.27%	£1,795	40.63%
Enfield	£973	22.03%	£1,366	30.92%	£1,763	39.91%
Hillingdon	£948	21.46%	£1,366	30.92%	£1,601	36.24%
Harrow	£1,028	23.27%	£1,436	32.51%	£1,761	39.86%
Lewisham	£1,067	24.15%	£1,490	33.73%	£1,880	42.56%
Kingston upon Thames	£1,127	25.51%	£1,560	35.31%	£1,901	43.03%
Barnet	£1,167	26.42%	£1,573	35.61%	£2,084	47.18%
Greenwich	£1,211	27.41%	£1,593	36.06%	£1,893	42.85%
Haringey	£1,193	27.01%	£1,614	36.54%	£2,060	46.63%
Newham	£1,239	28.05%	£1,668	37.76%	£1,973	44.66%
Brent	£1,249	28.27%	£1,685	38.14%	£2,211	50.05%
Hounslow	£1,204	27.26%	£1,706	38.62%	£2,036	46.09%
Merton	£1,325	29.99%	£1,790	40.52%	£2,335	52.86%
Ealing	£1,289	29.18%	£1,812	41.02%	£2,098	47.49%
Richmond upon Thames	£1,470	33.28%	£1,932	43.74%	£2,592	58.68%
Lambeth	£1,485	33.62%	£2,099	47.52%	£2,325	52.63%
Wandsworth	£1,480	33.50%	£2,152	48.72%	£2,591	58.65%
Hackney	£1,600	36.22%	£2,167	49.06%	£2,811	63.63%
Southwark	£1,589	35.97%	£2,194	49.67%	£2,608	59.04%
Islington	£1,738	39.34%	£2,355	53.31%	£3,461	78.35%
Hammersmith and Fulham	£1,695	38.37%	£2,389	54.08%	£2,887	65.35%
Tower Hamlets	£1,439	32.58%	£2,399	54.31%	£2,437	55.17%
Camden	£1,814	41.06%	£2,738	61.98%	£5,383	121.86%
Westminster	£2,602	58.90%	£3,864	87.47%	£5,978	135.33%
Kensington and Chelsea	£2,634	59.63%	£4,059	91.89%	£7,434	168.29%
London average	£1,311	29.68%	£1,839	41.63%	£2,460	55.69%