Four in 10 under-30s locked into rent contracts that exceed 30% of pay

Agents and property companies blame rapidly rising rents on a lack of supply. Photograph: Alex Segre/Alamy

Under-30s renters in Great Britain are facing a financial crisis, with the number paying an unaffordable share of their earnings to landlords hitting a five-year high, according to research.

Four in 10 young renters are locked into expensive new contracts that exceed 30% of their pay, a level that housing groups have said is too much to manage.