About Rotherham’s Housing Market
There are over 113,000 households in Rotherham. 64% own their own home, 21% rent from the Council or a housing association, and 15% rent from a private landlord.
The cost of living crisis and rising interest rates have affected many households across the Borough. 17% of households in Rotherham are living in fuel poverty. This is higher than the national average of 13%.
The average house price in Rotherham is around £182,000 and for first-time buyers is around £160,000. This has remained steady over the past twelve months, after the spike in prices following the Covid lockdown in 2020. The average house price is now 5.5 times the average annual salary of someone working in Rotherham.
Developers have built just under 2,500 new homes in Rotherham over the last three years. House prices of new build properties are usually around 30% higher than sales of existing homes.
Around 3,500 dwellings in Rotherham are currently empty. This is around 3% of all dwellings. Around 1,300 are classed as long-term empty, meaning they have been empty for longer than 6 months.
Since the Housing Strategy was originally published, the Council has sold over 1,600 homes through the Right to Buy scheme. The Council has built or purchased around 550 homes to replace these homes. More than 7,000 households are on the Council’s housing register. Renting from the Council remains the only option for many in Rotherham as rent levels from private landlords increase at a high rate. The average cost to rent a private three-bed property is £184 per week, a 46% increase over the last five years.
Homelessness in Rotherham is a pressing issue and over the last year the Council has had over 1,500 new households approach us to receive support to prevent or relieve their homelessness. This is driven by a combination of factors, including the cost of living, a shortage of affordable housing, and the complex needs of individuals.
