Buying a residential property has become more expensive than renting for the first time in 13 years.
First-time buyers now have to pay an extra £122 per month on a mortgage compared with if they rented the same property – an extra £1,500 per year, analysis by Zoopla shows.
This is despite rapidly rising rents and is the first time renting has been cheaper than first-time buyer mortgage payments since 2010.