RENTERS living in Bury could end up paying almost £119,000 more over their lifetimes as new research reveals that the price of renting in some areas of the borough has increased by almost a third in just 12 months.

Rises in rent were the highest in the BL8 postcode area, which covers the west and north of the town, as well as the Tottington, Walshaw, Greenmount and Affetside areas, where costs have jumped by an average of more than 29 per cent ­since 2018 ­— equivalent to £118,800 over the next 50 years.

Average rent has increased by more than a quarter, or £108,000, in the M25 postcode around Prestwich.

There have also been average increases of over 10 per cent in the BL0 postcode around Ramsbottom and almost in eight per cent in the M26 postcode around Radcliffe.

However, rents have remained the most stable in the BL9 postcode, covering the south and east of the town, where average rents had raised by around two per cent ­— slightly more than the rate of inflation for 2019.

While in the M45 postcode around Whitefield rents actually fell by an average of six per cent or £27,600.

The data comes from a tool created by windows company Thomas Sanderson.

Richard Petrie, Marketing Director for Thomas Sanderson, said: “People often assume that renting is somewhat cheaper than buying a house, and in some cases this is true, however, when you look at the average cost over 50 years, it’s clear to see that renting really is ‘throwing money away’ as it almost always results in being more expensive.

"It’s amazing how drastically renting costs have changed in just one year; it sets a worrying precedence and they could certainly continue to get more expensive as we head into 2020.”