Private sector rent statistics: 2010 - 2021

3. Main Findings for 1 Bedroom Properties

In the year to end September 2021, average 1 bedroom rents increased above the average 12 month UK CPI inflation rate of 1.5% in 9 out of 18 areas of Scotland, with the largest increases being in Ayrshires (7.5%), Forth Valley (6.6%) and the Scottish Borders (5.7%), with North Lanarkshire also seeing an increase of 0.7% in the latest year but below CPI.

Five areas saw little change (within +/-0.5%) in average rents compared with the previous year, including Aberdeen and Shire, Argyll and Bute, Greater Glasgow, Highland and Islands, and South Lanarkshire.

Average rents decreased by more than 0.5% in Renfrewshire / Inverclyde (-2.4%), East Dunbartonshire (-0.6%) and Lothian (-0.6%).

Average rents for 1 bedroom properties at the Scotland level increased by an estimated 0.6% between 2020 and 2021, to reach £546 in 2021, which compares to an average increase in UK CPI of 1.5% across the year to September 2021.

Figures on longer term changes to rents for 1 bedroom properties over the period from 2010 to 2021 should be considered in the context of the cumulative increase in UK CPI of 24.3% from the year to end September 2010 to the year to end September 2021.

Over the 11 year period from 2010 to 2021, two areas have seen rent increases above the level of CPI inflation. Lothian has seen the highest increase in private rents for 1 bedroom properties, with average rents rising by 45.2% (cumulative increase over 11 years) and average rents in the Greater Glasgow area rising by 38.1% between 2010 and 2021.

These cumulative increases equate to annualised growth rates of 3.4% for Lothian and 3.0% for Greater Glasgow, when calculated on a compound annual increase basis between 2010 and 2021.

For the remaining areas of Scotland, cumulative changes have been below CPI inflation. Aberdeen and Shire has seen a fall of 13.9% in average rents, which is likely to reflect decreased demand for rental properties in recent years following the downturn in the oil industry.

These regional trends combine to show an estimated 23.5% cumulative increase for 1 bedroom properties between 2010 and 2021 (equating to an annualised growth rate of 1.9%), to reach £546 in 2021. See Table 1 and Chart 2 below.

See Reference Tables (Tables 7 to 18) for a more detailed breakdown of quartile and average rents for each year.

* Note that the Scotland figures have been calculated using a weighted stock approach. See Section 8 for further details.

*Note that the Scotland figures have been calculated using a weighted stock approach. See Section 8 for further details.

In the year to end September 2021, Lothian had the highest average monthly rents for 1 bedroom properties across Scotland (£755), with Greater Glasgow having rents of £604. Areas with the lowest average rents for 1 bedroom properties included North Lanarkshire (£398), Renfrewshire / Inverclyde (£392), and the Scottish Borders (£387). See Chart 3 below.

*Note that the Scotland figures have been calculated using a weighted stock approach. See Section 8 for further details.