'With four jobs in London I couldn't afford rent so I'm going to Manchester'

"I'm a born-and-bred Londoner but I'm leaving because I can't afford it. I'm being driven out of my own home."

Lauren Elcock, 31, who is struggling to pay £850 a month for her room in a shared rental in north-east London, is leaving the capital for a new job some 200 miles away.

"It's at the cheaper end of London and even that is kind of ridiculous for a room," she says.

In the past five years, she says her rent has increased by £250 a month.

In May 2025 she was made redundant, and since then she has juggled four jobs including dog walking and working in the local gym, just "making ends meet".

Viewing this situation as no longer feasible, she's set her sights on Manchester, where she's secured a flat for £500 a month.

Lauren isn't the only one struggling to pay rent.

On Saturday, a national housing demonstration, which brought together tenant groups, housing campaigners and trade unions, demanded more measures to make rent affordable.

They argue the Renters' Rights Act, which comes into effect on 1 May, doesn't go far enough, and are calling for the government to introduce further measures to make rent more affordable.

The new legislation means landlords will need to give two months' notice to raise the rent, and can only increase the rent once a year to "the market rate".

Tenants who believe the figure is excessive can challenge the landlord at a first-tier tribunal, a type of civil court.

The Renters' Rights Act will also end the practice of "bidding wars", so new tenants cannot be asked to pay more than the advertised price.

Joe Beswick from the London Renters' Union says it will make a "tremendously big difference" but "it only address the issue of security" and while that is "absolutely essential", it "doesn't tackle the other half of the crisis, which is affordability".

"What we need is clarity from the government for renters, including rules that prevent landlords that do massive hikes."

He is calling for rent controls and rent caps.

The changes come as average UK monthly private rents increased by 3.5% to £1,367 in the 12 months to September 2025, according to a provisional estimate by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

Analysis from flatshare website Spareroom found that only five London postcodes still have sub-£800 average room rents, down from 81 postcodes in 2020.

According to its survey of 4,500 tenants in England - shared exclusively with the BBC - since the Renters' Right Act received Royal Assent almost six months ago, 30% of tenants who have stayed in the same rental property have had their rents increased.

And across all tenants, 11% have been evicted or received notice of an eviction.

Director Matt Hutchinson says "it isn't fair tenants have been at the receiving end of all the upheaval since the 1 May hard deadline was announced".

He added: "On the upside, what we may find is landlords who treat their rentals as a passive income may decide enough is enough, and that's not necessarily a bad thing."

Darren Baxter, principal policy adviser at the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, says that while the rate at which rents are increasing has slowed, they've been "persistently high compared to renters' incomes for the past two decades, particularly in London".

He added: "This means even relatively small increases are enough to make rents unaffordable.

"Rent rises are also often uneven, making it difficult for renters to manage any increases. If renters move, the rent on a new property tends to be higher."

He argues that while the Renters' Rights Act "will protect renters from some of the most financially punishing aspects of renting... landlords can still raise rents under the act, leaving renters without the security of a home they can afford".

'Rent rises pushed me on to benefits'

Data analyst Maxine Hamilton, 33, claims her landlord admitted to raising her rent by £200 a month specifically ahead of the law changes.

She says the cost of her small one-bedroom flat in south-east London has gone up £500 in seven years to £1,350.

With her partner's poor health leaving her the sole earner, they have been pushed onto universal credit - which is assessed as a household - because she can not afford the rent alone.

"I can't physically move out anywhere cheaper because I can't find anywhere.

"It's so frustrating. I don't want to be on universal credit.

"I want to be able to support my family, and myself. I'm paying taxes in my full-time job and those taxes are going towards paying universal credit which is going towards paying my landlord's mortgage, whilst I'm stuck here with little disposable income.

"Every time I try and plan for the future, every time I think things are going to improve, it all just gets knocked down again."

Polling conducted by Public First, a research consultancy, shows one in three Londoners aged 18 to 30 say they are likely to leave the capital within the next two years - this equates to around 600,000 people.

The research involved an anonymous online survey of 1,066 adults living in London in August 2025.

The study puts this desire to leave the capital down to the cost of living, particularly rent.

"That also then has a ripple effect on London's culture, leisure and hospitality sectors," says Ruth Duston from London Heritage Quarter, a recently formed collective of four central London Business Improvement Districts (BIDs), which commissioned the research.

"It is a big concern for our businesses."

'We've barely had any rights before'

Lauren is moving out of London at the same time as the Renters' Rights Act comes into effect, legislation she broadly welcomes.

"We've barely had any rights before so it's good that it will be harder to be evicted; you're not locked into anything, so if your rent is skyrocketing you can choose to leave."

But she adds she wants to see rent caps explored: "You've got to wonder where the ceiling is."

Maxine believes the changes will make a positive difference, but thinks the government could have gone further by introducing rent caps.

"If I'm feeling like this, and all the people working full time on universal credit are feeling like this, it feels ridiculous.

"Landlords can set the market rate so it's saying as long as enough landlords agree, they can increase the rent as much as they can."

Labour's Renters' Rights Act will become law during the local election campaign. A recent YouGov poll ranked the cost of living and housing to be among the top 10 issues locally for British people, ahead of polling day on 7 May.

Steve Reed, MP for Streatham and Croydon North and Secretary of State for Housing, said: "Across London, 2.7 million renters will benefit from Labour's Renters' Rights Bill, ending Section 21 no-fault evictions so families can't be forced out without reason, capping unfair rent hikes, and introducing a new ombudsman and stronger enforcement to drive up standards.

"It will also ban bidding wars, stop blanket bans on families and those on benefits, and give renters more rights over their homes.

"This is what change looks like: a Labour government working with Labour councils and a Labour mayor to bring down the cost of living and give Londoners the security of a home they can rely on."

Here's what the other political parties have told BBC London:

Conservative Party

The Conservatives said the Renters' Rights Act "was legislation that the Conservatives put forward in the last Parliament".

They added: "Labour's version does not seek to strike an appropriate balance with landlords and, in the midst of a housebuilding collapse, will exacerbate housing costs for Londoners by driving landlords out of the market."

Liberal Democrats

The Lib Dems say the rental market should offer "security, not stress... everyone has the right a safe, warm and affordable home".

A spokesperson from the party told BBC London that they've "long called for an end to no-fault evictions - a promise the Conservatives made and repeatedly broke.

"We're glad this has now been delivered, and we'll keep pushing to make renting fairer."

Green Party

A spokesperson for the Greens told us: "Rent controls are not included in the Renters' Rights Act - something the Greens have campaigned on.

"Greens are hugely disappointed that this Labour government refuses to devolve powers for rent controls. The mayor of London hasn't done enough to push for this – Greens will keep up the pressure."

Reform UK

Reform said: "Labour's Renters' Rights Act has been a disaster for renters in London. It's already driving landlords to sell up in droves, slashing rental supply and pushing up rental prices."