Rent prices have increased in every borough of Greater Manchester last month with Wigan remaining the cheapest place to rent reveals latest ONS figures.
With each of the ten local authority areas experiencing increased rent prices the cost to rent in GM’s cheapest borough Wigan has also increased – by an average of £6 – a 0.96% increase from February.
Currently the cheapest Wigan property to rent on property site Rightmove is £475 with the most expensive home listed at £1,650 in the Marylebone area.
Greater Manchester Tenant’s Union said: “Exponential rent rises across our region highlight the need to return to a system of rent controls. [We] see more and more renters facing eviction and social cleansing, driven from their communities by huge hikes due to the opportunistic greed of landlords and letting agents.
“Contrary to the mythology of the landlord lobby, rent control works across Europe and North America to prevent the exploitation of tenants.”
The highest increase in rent per month comes from Salford which had an average rent cost of £1,010 in February and has since increased by £11.
Rightmove listings in Salford range from studio apartments between £600 and £700 to a three bedroom penthouse costing £7,175 per month.
Data shows that Manchester is the most expensive area to rent in with an average cost per month of £1,194 in March – a £10 increase from February.
Rent prices in the borough of Manchester are almost double that in Wigan – making for opposite ends of the affordability scale.
Aidan Thatcher, director of place at Wigan Council said: “There is a serious housing crisis in the UK with many factors contributing to the current situation. While private rental prices are largely set independent of local authorities, here in Wigan Borough we continue to take a pro-active approach to delivering quality homes that meet our residents’ needs.
“Delivering affordable housing for our borough’s residents is one of Wigan Council’s top priorities. Our goal is to ensure that Wigan Borough is a fantastic place for people to live, work, visit and invest.”
Despite having the second highest rent prices per month the borough of Trafford has only seen a £3 increase in rent from February to March 2024 but renting here will cost you £1,148.
Bury and Rochdale have both experienced an increase of £5 per month to their average rent costs in the month of March – closely followed by Bolton with an increase of £6.
Oldham and Tameside have remained very close in average rent prices with a property in Tameside costing £765 and an Oldham property asking for an average £762.
Stockport rents have increased in March by an average of £10 per month with the average price of a property costing £926.
There is a large disparity in property prices in Stockport with Rightmove’s cheapest listing coming in at £650 for a studio and a four-bed house topping the scale at £3,250 per month.
Main image credit: Helen Clarke
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