Flood risk is dampening rental growth as tenants opt for higher ground

Areas, where flooding is more likely to happen, have seen lower rental growth in the past five years, analysis from landlord letting agency Bunk shows.

Bunk looked at areas with a high to medium risk of flooding and how rental growth compares across these areas depending on the severity of the flood risk.

Between 2014 and 2019 areas where more than 30% of postcodes were at a high risk of flooding saw rental growth of 10.71%.

This compares to 12.75% in areas where 20-30% of postcodes are high risk, and 15.26% between 10-20%.

Halifax and Canterbury see low five-year rental growth

With 38.55% of its postcodes being at high risk of flooding, rents in Halifax increased by just 0.78% in the past two years and 1.78% in the past five.

In Canterbury, where 39.93% postcodes are at a high risk of flooding, rental growth has been slow in the past five years at 2.34%. However, they seem to be bouncing back, rising by 8.31% in the past two.

On average, UK rents rose by 11.86% between 2014 and 2019 and 3.54% between 2017 and 2019 – so both Halifax and Canterbury are lagging behind the average in the past five years.

Cambridge and Newcastle on the rise despite the risks

Some areas are seeing very strong rental growth despite flood risks.

Cambridge, for example, saw rental growth of 9.08% in the past two years and a massive 31.16% between 2014 and 2019.

This is despite having 36.73% of its postcodes in high flood risk areas, as well as 39.90% in medium flood risk areas.

It’s a similar story in Newcastle, where 25.93% of postcodes are at a high risk of flooding.

While rents have grown by a steady 5.91% between 2017 and 2019, in the past five years they’ve soared by 30.60%.

Co-founder of Bunk, Tom Woollard, commented:

“When investing in property you need to do your homework on the area as a whole and not just the local property market. While nature can be unpredictable, buying in an area with a known risk such as flooding can see your financial return wash down the drain as you spend thousands on repairing your property and getting it back to a state that is fit for purpose in the rental market.

Of course, with risk often comes reward and while there is a notable correlation between the risk of flooding and a lower level of rental growth, investing in an area with high tenant demand, such as Cambridge, can still prove lucrative.”

Flood risk and rental growth – overall categories
High risk
High flood risk category (% of postcodes in given area)
Average of high flood risk category (% of postcodes in given area)
Average rental growth (2014-2019)
Difference 2014-2019 (%)
0 – 10%
5.3%
14.4%
10 – 20%
15.5%
15.3%
0.9%
20 – 30%
25.0%
12.8%
-2.5%
30% +
39.5%
10.7%
-2.0%
Medium risk
Medium flood risk category (% of postcodes in given area)
Average of medium flood risk category (% of postcodes in given area)
Average rental growth (2014-2019)
Difference 2014-2019 (%)
0 – 10%
7.3%
17.4%
10 – 20%
15.2%
14.5%
-2.9%
20 – 30%
24.3%
15.9%
1.4%
30% +
43.0%
10.8%
-5.0%

 

Top high flood risk areas – by postcode %
 
High flood risk areas by rental growth (2014-2019)
Location
% of postcodes – High Risk Flooding
Rental growth (2014-2019)
Cambridge
36.73%
31.16%
Newcastle
25.93%
30.60%
Bolton
25.00%
25.38%
Slough
28.84%
21.96%
Colchester
19.95%
19.56%
Oxford
21.77%
16.06%
St. Albans
22.56%
13.32%
Dorchester
26.54%
13.09%
Stockport
20.22%
12.54%
Huddersfield
31.98%
12.27%
Top medium flood risk areas – by postcode %
 
Medium flood risk areas by rental growth (2014-2019)
Location
% of postcodes – Medium Risk Flooding
Rental growth (2014-2019)
Cambridge
39.90%
31.16%
Exeter
38.57%
28.93%
Coventry
31.14%
17.31%
Guilford
37.54%
16.39%
Sheffield
32.80%
15.08%
Peterborough
36.93%
14.46%
Croydon
79.15%
14.17%
Bromley
38.45%
13.62%
Walsall
37.44%
11.90%
Wolverhampton
50.56%
10.78%

Properganda PR

National and local media coverage for property businesses. Journo quotes delivered in minutes.

You May Also Enjoy

Home and Living

Best Budget Smartphones Under $200

In the rapidly advancing digital era, it’s no longer a luxury but a necessity to have a smartphone. Not everyone however needs or is able to pay hundreds of dollars for an expensive device. The good news is that there are numerous budget smartphones under $200 that provide great performance, decent cameras, and a long…
Read More
Rightmove logo
Breaking News

Ten years on: More first-time buyers moving to cities while the coast stands still

New ten-year analysis of the property market shows that more first-time buyers are looking to move to cities, while the coast has seen no growth in new buyers First-time buyer demand to move to Great Britain’s 50 largest cities (excluding London) is up by 16% on average over the last ten years, with Dundee topping…
Read More
Breaking News

Homeowners in England and Wales overvalue their properties by an average of 16%

Homeowners in England and Wales are overestimating the value of their property by an average of 16%, according to new figures. Data from Quick Move Now compares homeowner estimates with formal estate agent valuations and is broken down by both region and property type. Overall, homeowners overvalue in every single category.   Regional breakdown Region…
Read More
Visual blemishes on Roads due to service upgrades
Estate Agent Talk

Emergency Sidewalk Repairs: When to Act and Who to Call

Sidewalks are the unsung heroes of city infrastructure—quietly assisting tens of millions of footsteps every day. But when they crack, disintegrate, or shift all of sudden, they might quickly turn out to be volatile liabilities. In a town like New York, in which pedestrian site visitors are constant and belongings proprietors are legally chargeable for…
Read More
Breaking News

Reapit report reveals agents’ long-term market confidence amid legislative challenges

Despite the significant challenges posed by a shifting economic landscape and the largest wave of housing legislation in decades, estate and letting agents remain steadfast in their confidence about their long-term future in the industry. According to the first Reapit Property Outlook Report 2025, covering the full breadth of sales and lettings agency opinion countrywide,…
Read More
Breaking News

Owner-Occupiers Drive Resilient Commercial Property Market

Buying Becomes 37% Cheaper Than Renting The latest Commercial Property Demand Index from specialist property finance expert, Rangewell, reveals that while investor appetite across the sector held steady in Q2, strong levels of owner-occupied commercial mortgage activity are helping drive market performance, as business owners increasingly move from renting to buying their long-term premises for…
Read More