Private tenants are paying £2,195 more on their annual housing costs than in 2022, according to Savills’ latest research.

Total costs for renters hit £81 billion in 2024, taking the annual bill for the average household renting up to £14,458.

Lucian Cook, of Savills, said while rental growth slowed in 2024, a significant uptick in the total rental bill reflects the time taken for historical growth to feed into the amount people pay.

“Across the country rents have hit an affordability ceiling, but tenants are still left spending a larger proportion of their income on rent than at any point in the last 20 years,” he added.

Its analysis of private and social rents along with owner-occupier mortgage costs reveals a £19.8billion increase in total housing expenditure last year, at 10%.

Total costs are now £8.6billion higher than the previous peak in 2016, even on an inflation-adjusted basis.

It means the nation’s housing bill has risen by £41.2billion in the last two years, Savills said.

London was the region which saw the biggest increase - at 27% since 2022 - in 2024, followed by the East Midlands and West Midlands, at 25% each.

Londoners incurred a quarter of national housing costs last year as tenants in the capital have borne the brunt of rental growth and are typically the most exposed to higher mortgage costs.

Meanwhile, the North East saw the smallest uplift,  increasing 17% during the past two years.

The average mortgaged homeowner is paying £12,754 per year, Savills said - £2,829 more than in 2022 - primarily driven by mortgage interest repayments, which have increased by 32%.

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