The cost of renting a typical home in the UK is cheaper than the average monthly mortgage payment for the first time since June 2025, analysis from Rightmove has revealed.
The analysis detailed that the average advertised monthly rent across the country currently sits at £1,547.
Meanwhile, the average monthly mortgage payment, which Rightmove estimates by taking the average asking price of a home, a two-year fixed rate of 5.35 per cent, and assumes a 20 per cent deposit and mortgage term of 30 years, reached £1,670.
This change was attributed to an increase in mortgage rates since the start of the year as they rose from 4.24 per cent in February to 5.35 per cent in April.
Rightmove property expert, Colleen Babcock, said: “Mortgage payments have risen quite sharply in a short space of time for new buyers.
“It will be interesting to see whether more would‑be buyers turn to renting temporarily while rates remain high, particularly when monthly costs can exceed average rents and the timing of rate cuts is still unclear.”
Regional differences
Additionally, the analysis found that there was a large disparity between different UK regions on this matter with some areas, such as Scotland and the North East of England, reporting that rents were higher than mortgage payments.
Rightmove detailed that, in the North East, the average mortgage payment stood at £886 while the average monthly rent was £931, putting rental payments £45 higher.
Scotland’s difference was even more substantial as, due to an average mortgage payment of £930 and an average monthly rent of £1,121, it boasted a difference of £191 in favour of rents.
Meanwhile, on the other end of the spectrum, the South East was found to be the region in which mortgages most outpaced rental payments, reporting a gulf of £363.
This was because, while the average monthly rents remained relatively high at £1,792, average mortgage payments were estimated to have reached £2,155.
While the South East boasted the greatest disparity, it was closely followed by London, where mortgages were £362 higher than rents, the East of England, where they were £304 higher, and the South West, £299.
tom.dunstan@ft.com
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