£1300 pcm for a tiny one bed flat?!

[NellesVilla]

I’m well and truly gobsmacked.

I have just viewed a flat in Guildford, Surrey as I’m thinking of moving to the area (know it well, many links etc). The flat- nondescript (but pleasant enough, one bed, small) was a whopping £1300 pcm. There were others that cost MORE!

I felt the place was too small for a couple and as a singleton would want to live alone in a space that size as I am large and it would be cramped for more than one.

I’m sorry but how the hell is this possible? That price is absolutely obscene. Do people really pay that much for a one bed in an admittedly nice, but nothing special location?!

After tax, that rent plus bills and basic living expenses would leave me with pennies so there’s no way it’ll be happening. I’d probably fail the affordability check anyway so I don’t know why the letting agents showed me around tbf.

I would need to claim benefits for that ridiculous monthly cost- something I’ve never done before.

But my main point is: how on earth have we got to this? A basic one bed flat in a bog standard Surrey town costing this much?

I’ve posted about similar but felt the need to share. It’s a joke.

My first flat was around there, same price for a studio. The price doesn't surprise me at all, doesn't make it ok though.

Yanbu!!! It's ridiculous. A bedroom in Brixton was around £950 without bills I saw somewhere online. This is a bog standard BEDROOM!! Something really has to give.

My son's uni ROOM - not flat- is costing not much less in London. Absolutely bonkers.

My cousin was paying that for a 1 bed attic flat in south london 10+ years ago. She couldn't stand up in about a third of it. It doesn't surprise me that Guildford now costs this much.

The prices themselves are astonishing, but that size/ location cost it's too IYSWIM.

We paid £1200 a month for a one bed flat 11 years ago, though admittedly that was in zone 2 London, so it doesn't seem that outrageous to me.

DS girlfriend and another couple rented a two bed in Leeds £1800 pcm. They're students and halls was much more expensive £2600. pcm . They've just let it go agent relisted at a higher price it's criminal but they're getting away with it

Sorry to hijack thread but a question for anyone who may live in a one bedroom or studio what are the bills like ie gas, electricity and water. Thanks.

Are either of you key workers? I believe there are discounts/cheaper properties available for key workers.

Unfortunately true, that area gets to charge high rents, it's getting ridiculous...

For the last year DS and friends paid £75 pcm each excluding internet. I'd phone the estate agent for updated info. It could be more fluid this coming year

What area are you moving from OP? Or are you moving out of owner occupied?

You are spot on.
In 2015 I lived in central woking (5 miles from Guildford) in the huge tower by the station and paid £1250 for a sparsely furnished 1 bed. At the time i commuted to London and had to be at my desk at 7.30am, so needed fast access to the station.

It genuinely hurt to waste so much money. That and council tax of 150pcm and train tickets of 380pcm and i was 'living' on just over 300 pounds a month left over.

As you can imagine, it wasnt sustainable and I was finally 'priced out' in 2017 and had to quit my job, leave and work somewhere else.

Since then my old flat seems to rent for a tiny bit more, but not loads more - almost certainly because woking has recently been flooded with massive newbuilds.

Guildford is definitely the wealthier big brother to woking, but you need a v good wage or family money to live there. Its not a place you just pick because its nice...

You would pay the same or up to 1900 euros for the same here in my European country in a similar location close to the main city. Council tax equivalent and energy bills are admittedly a bit lower. But this is standard all over Europe, and I should imagine the world, if you want to live in this type of location. Salaries nearer big cities generally compensate for it, along with the career progression opportunities they bring. There are plenty of cheaper parts of the UK to live in?

Wow that's insane, where I live you can get a 2 bed property for £650

Same where I am, it’s ludicrous, 750 for a double bedroom not even en-suite etc. Even on a half decent wage it’s just fucking greedy.

Sorry I meant even on a half decent wage it’s too much,

Any yet people berate those who need help with rent costs rather than the greedy so and so's getting rich by ripping others off.

It’s supply and demand. There is demand for it at that price, meaning some people can afford it. If it doesn’t let, the price will drop.

And also those not wanting to give up SH?

Massive step down into private rents IMO. People really want all suffering to be equal.

So what’s forcing up demand? The policy is what’s gone wrong, because x number of people in a country earning the money and needing the homes should balance in a healthy economy with sane housing policy.

@sst1234 more like they have no choice. I can’t afford my extortionate rental anymore but I also can’t afford anywhere else!

It really won't be dropping by any considerable amount, if at all. A slight decrease or stagnation isn't benefitting renters, it's still crap

My son can't get one at all. He's trying to get a two bed with a mate, and being repeatedly turned down. They are going pretty much as soon as they're listed round here. Frustrating.

I live in Dublin. You'd be lucky to find anything other than a bedroom in a shared house for less than 1,500 a month - and in a nice area it would be far more.

Cost of private rentals are more than I earn per month. People really have no choice but to claim HB a lot
of the time.