Epping Forest is the least affordable place to rent in Essex, says ONS

Eight years ago, tenants in ten of Essex’s fourteen districts spent more than a third of their gross monthly income on rent.

The most affordable area in the county in 2022-2023 was Tendring, where tenants paid just over a quarter of their income in rent.

Across the country, rents as a percentage of income fell to the lowest level in the past nine financial years, with only Epping Forest exceeding 33%.

It was the second most unaffordable place to rent in the east of England in 2022-23, behind Hertsmere in Hertfordshire, where residents paid 36% of their income on rent.

Although private rental costs had risen, the Office for National Statistics said incomes had risen faster.

Barrie Blostone, owner of three buy-to-let properties in the area, said it was a difficult time for both landlords and tenants.

“Landlords are already withdrawing from the market and trying to sell properties. In East Anglia, for every rental property advertised, there are around 20 people wanting to move into those properties.”