If you reside in a city and belong to the age group of 20s and 30s, chances are you’ve come across these types of posts on social media. You might have even shared one yourself. These posts usually start with something like, “Looking for someone to take over my room in Dalston for two weeks in late September!” and then mention the price, excluding bills. The text is usually overlaid on an image of the room, with the owner’s belongings neatly arranged around it. It’s common to see messages like, “Going to Ibiza/New York/Italy and looking for someone ASAP! No time wasters, plz! DM for more deets!”
Over the past few years, such posts have become more prevalent and increasingly the subject of ridicule. One popular Instagram meme account, @real_housewives_of_clapton, features a post that humorously says, “Hi am looking for someone to rent my room for 8 hours while I go out for a bit of lunch and see an exhibition. Lovely house. All bills included.” The duration of these “sublets” has become shorter and shorter. In a recent post, someone was advertising a sublet for just nine days in their student halls, most likely because they didn’t need to start university yet.
While these sublet posts are amusing, it’s important to consider why sublets have become so rampant in the UK. Private rent prices have increased by 5% in the past year. According to property website Rightmove, average monthly rents outside London reached a record high of £1,190 in the first quarter of the year, while London renters are paying around £2,500 for the first time. Additionally, one-third of renters in England do not have enough savings to cover rent if they were to lose their jobs. For students, the cost of student housing exceeds the maximum government-offered maintenance loan. And for those receiving housing benefits, only 5% of private rented homes are affordable.
Given these circumstances, it’s no surprise that renters can no longer afford vacations or short trips abroad without ensuring their home is financially covered. With rents being so high, people have little left to spare for a holiday. Therefore, being able to afford a trip typically depends on finding someone to cover the rent while they’re away. Despite the risks involved, people are still willing to sublet, even though it’s generally against the rental agreement. This demonstrates how tight things are for renters. While demand exists, finding subletters who will pay rent for a couple of weeks when the original tenant is away is not impossible, thanks to the country’s housing shortage.
It’s also worth noting how challenging and laborious it is to secure a flat in the UK. Renters often have to outbid each other, offering well above the asking price to secure a home. Many people, including myself, are agreeing to longer-term contracts of two or three years to protect themselves against annual rent increases and the hassle of searching for a new place. In the past, someone might have given up their room to travel. However, now it’s not worth the risk. What if they can’t find a new room upon their return? This brings us back to the question: if finding a long-term flat is such a struggle, why not sublet for a while instead?
Ultimately, the solution to this problem does not lie solely with renters, nor would it be helpful for landlords to crack down on illegitimate subletters (perhaps they should have thought about that before raising the rent by £300 a month for a cramped attic conversion without an oven). The UK’s housing system needs a significant overhaul, with better tenant protections such as rent freezes and longer, secure tenancies. Until then, those Instagram posts from friends advertising their small room in Stoke Newington for £1,000 while they go to Wales for the weekend are likely to continue.
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