Average Tenancy Deposit Cost Revealed
The average tenancy deposit value across the UK has risen over the past year, according to The Dispute Service (TDS).
In a report, the organisation says that the average value of tenancy deposits and the number being protected is increasing, though there are regional differences.
The TDS says that in England and Wales, the average deposit value is nearly double that found in Northern Ireland - though they also highlight that the higher cost of renting in London distorts the overall figures.
The average deposit for England and Wales is £1,110 in 2018 and for Northern Ireland, the average is £587 and in Scotland, it is £675.
This means that the average amount of tenancy deposits grew last year by 2% in England and Wales, in Scotland they rose by 1.5% and in Northern Ireland, they grew by 1.4%
Deposits being protected
The number of deposits being protected has also grown year-on-year.
The TDS says that are 3,748,000 protected deposits in England and Wales, a rise of 1.6% over the year, in Scotland the figure is 9,441 deposits, while in Northern Ireland, the number of deposits being protected rocketed by 8.9% to reach 53,510.
The TDS' chief executive Steve Harriott said: "The report shows the differences between the UK's constituent countries, but it does hide local disparities.
"The average deposit value, for example, in England and Wales doesn't reflect the differences between those in central London and places with lower deposits.”
He added that the private rental sector continues to grow along with the number of deposits being protected and their value.
New service allows landlords to target students
Meanwhile, a new automated feed service will enable landlords to target potential student tenants in the city where they live.
The offering from Accommodation for Students (AFS) is aimed at letting agents and buy to let landlords to connect with student tenants across the UK.
The service enables a landlord to upload multiple properties in real time for targeting student tenants when previously these properties had to be manually uploaded and then deactivated when unavailable.
The Accommodation for Students’ director, Simon Thompson, said: "We’ve been working on the service for a long time and it's now working seamlessly with excellent results."
He added that it's also great news for the 3 million students who visit the AFS portal annually since they will be reassured that the inventory of available student properties is up-to-date.
