Renters have seen costs rise twice as fast as people who own their homes outright in the last year, underscoring the growing social divide caused by the housing crisis.
Inflation for Britons who rent their homes climbed 3.6% in the year to March, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), the highest of any group.
It was also far above headline inflation of 2.6% over the same period, reflecting how spiralling rents for the UK’s 5.5 million private tenants continue to outstrip broader price rises in the economy.
By contrast, costs for people who own their homes increased by 1.8%, making them the group most sheltered from inflation.
UK household costs, as measured by the Household Costs Indices (HCIs), increased by 2.6% in the year to March 2025, down from 2.9% in the year to December 2024.
— Office for National Statistics (ONS) (@ONS) May 29, 2025
HCIs provide insight into inflation as experienced by different types of households.
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The figures underline the challenge facing Sir Keir Starmer’s government, as it tries to ease an acute housing shortage that has pushed up rents and prices in recent years.
Labour has promised to build 1.5 million homes by 2030 but the Office for Budget Responsibility recently forecast it will fall short by about 200,000.
Think tank the Resolution Foundation said housing continues to be a “major headwind” in the cost-of-living crisis.
Senior economist Simon Pittaway told the PA news agency: “Inflation is at the forefront of everyone’s minds but some groups have been hit harder by recent price rises than others.
“As policy makers grapple with ongoing cost-of-living concerns, boosting support for low-income families who rent and increasing the availability to homes to buy should be priorities.”
By comparison, people who have mortgages saw inflation ease to 2.8%, well below 5.6% from the year before, after the Bank of England cut interest rates several times in 2024 and early 2025.
The base interest rate helps dictate how expensive it is to take out a mortgage or a loan, as well as influencing the interest rates offered by banks on savings accounts.
Hikes in recent years, designed to combat skyrocketing inflation, have left mortgage rates much higher than was normal for most of the last decade.
Social renters, such as people who live in rented council homes, were the next worst affected after private renters, with average inflation of 3%.
The ONS also found that families who are working age faced a higher rate of inflation, at 2.8%, than retired people, at 2.1%.
And households with children saw price rises of 2.8% compared to those without, who saw a 2.6% increase.
