Private Sector Rent Statistics: 2010 - 2015

Main Findings for 2 Bedroom Properties

TABLE 3: 2 Bedroom Properties - Average (mean) Monthly Rents (£): Cumulative Changes 2010 to 2015, by Broad Rental Market Area

CHART 4: Cumulative % Change in Average (mean) Rents from 2010 to 2015 (years to end-Sept), by Broad Rental Market Area - 2-Bedroom Properties

See Reference Tables (Tables 12 to 17) for a more detailed breakdown of quartile and average rents for each year.

From 2014 to 2015, 13 areas have seen increases in rent for 2 bedroom properties. These ranged from 6.6% in Greater Glasgow and 6.4% in Lothian to 0.6% in South Lanarkshire and 0.4% in Forth Valley. Five areas saw decreases, these were Scottish Borders (-0.1%), Ayrshires (-0.1), West Dunbartonshire (-0.5%), Fife (-2.3%) and Aberdeen and Shire (-2.7%).

These regional trends combine to show an increase of 2.2% in average rents between 2014 and 2015 for 2 bedroom properties, at the Scotland level.

Over the 5 year period from 2010 to 2015, the Aberdeen and Shire area of the country has seen the highest increase in private rents for 2 bedroom properties, with average monthly rents rising from £643 per month to £874, or 36.0% (cumulative increase over 5 years). Average rents in the Lothian area have risen by a cumulative 24.7% over the last 5 years (from £665 to £829) and Greater Glasgow where the average has increased by 18.5% (from £564 to £668).

For the remaining areas of Scotland, cumulative increases over the last 5 years have ranged from 8.2% (Highlands and Islands) to 0.5% (Scottish Borders). Two areas of the country have seen cumulative decreases in average rents from 2010 to 2015 - Ayrshires (-0.8%) and West Dunbartonshire (-3.2%).

These regional trends combine to show a 13.7% cumulative increase in average rents from 2010 to 2015 for 2 bedroom properties at the Scotland level.

Figures on changes to rents over the period from 2010 to 2015 should be considered in the context of the cumulative increase in the UK Consumer Price Index of 11.6% from Sept-10 to Sept-15^[5]. For example, over the 5 year period, average rents for 2 bedroom properties in the Aberdeen and Shire, Lothian, and Greater Glasgow areas have risen faster than the consumer price index, whilst changes in average rents for 2 bedroom properties in other areas of the country have been below the rise in the consumer price index.

TABLE 4: Average (mean) monthly rents for 2 Bedroom Properties in 2015 (year to end-Sept)

CHART 5: Average (mean) Monthly Rents 2015 (year to end-Sept), by Broad Rental Market Area - 2-Bedroom Properties

For the year to end-September 2015, Aberdeen and Shire had the highest average monthly rents for 2 bedroom properties across Scotland (£874). Other areas with higher rents included Lothian (£829) and Greater Glasgow (£668). Areas with the lowest average rents for 2 bedroom properties included Scottish Borders (£444) and Dumfries & Galloway (£446).