RENTERS are paying the price for a shortfall in homes to let and reforms to buy-to-let tax rules, according to new data.

And rent in Brighton and Hove is rising faster than in any other city in England and Wales.

Between 2017 and 2018, the cost of renting in the city has increased by 8.2 per cent, a figure topped only by Dundee, where it has grown by 8.5 per cent.

Edinburgh’s rent has risen by 6.2 per cent and Newcastle’s by 5.2 per cent.

According to data from letting agent Hamptons International, the average rent per calendar month in Brighton and Hove is £1,384.

This figure has risen by 14.5 per cent since 2015.

Chris Henry, 46, works in MP Peter Kyle’s Hove constituency office and will be running as a Labour Party candidate in the Brighton and Hove City Council elections next year.

He said: “I have lived in the city for 20 years, and until I managed to get a housing association place through a shared ownership scheme, I had to rent and was paying £800 for a bedsit with a shared bathroom. Not that long ago, you could get a one-bedroom flat for that price.

“On top of how unaffordable and out of touch with local wages it is, renting doesn’t feel stable and the quality is dire.

“Ikea furniture and a lick of mushroom paint allows landlords to charge higher rent but behind the facade there are often broken boilers and damp issues.”

Alice Revel, who owns book subscription service Reading In Heels, rents a one-bedroom flat in central Hove for £995 per month.

The 34-year-old said: “The figure doesn’t surprise me, as people like me who work from home or have flexible working patterns are moving down from London.

“It’s the trendiest place in Europe and it has a draw for people who have been priced out of London.

“Airbnb is also causing a shortage of homes and it’s something the council should look at.”

Peter Kyle said: “Britain’s housing system is broken and no place is suffering more than Brighton and Hove.

“With rents at such eye- watering levels we not only need measures such as capping rises but we need radical action to get to the core of the problem.

“That’s why I’m calling for the Government to back councils and housing associations with new funding, powers and flexibilities to build again at scale.”

“Locally, I’m proud the council has committed to a joint venture to build 1,000 truly affordable homes for local people. Brighton may lead on the problem, but if we embrace ourselves as a forward-thinking city we can lead on the solutions too.”