Brighton salary to rent ratio among worst in the country

Adzuna, Europe’s fastest-growing job search engine, found London, Oxford, The Wirral and Brighton were the poorest-performing towns for renters.

The study assumed monthly rent was split between two people and compared average advertised job salaries with average rental figures in towns and cities across the UK.

Average home in Brighton and Hove 14 times more than typical salary

It found Brighton’s workers spent 37 per cent of their pay on rent each month and first-time buyers could only afford six per cent of homes in the city.

Andrew Hunter, Adzuna’s co-founder, said: “Rent payments are really eating into the salaries of workers in our most expensive locations, with cities like London and Oxford proving the worst value.

“Even though workers may be paid a higher monthly salary, their left-over cash is often smaller after paying steep living costs and local property premiums.”

He warned that people would find it hard to escape the rent trap and get on the property ladder because few properties in the worst areas were affordable.

“The outlook for wannabe homeowners in these areas is looking gloomy,” said Mr Hunter.

At the other end of the scale, Swindon was judged the best value town in the country: just 12 per cent of people’s monthly pay was spent on rent.

It allowed them to keep £2,293 from their salaries each month.

Brighton, by comparison, only saw workers keep £1,359.

A spokesperson for renters’ union Brighton ACORN, said: “Rents in Brighton are high because landlords keep putting the rent up. Until we have effective rent controls, greedy landlords will continue to charge extortionate rents to live in substandard housing and threaten us with eviction if we dare to complain.

“This is why renters need to work together to fight against rip-off landlords and fight for a society where we all have access to a safe, affordable home.”