PRICES in Scotland’s private rental sector have skyrocketed over the last year, a new report has shown, raising fears over community "devastation".

A study from City Lets has revealed the “grim reality” of inflation for rental properties across Scotland, finding that there has been a year-on-year (YoY) rise of 9.9% at £970 per month on average - an all-time high.

The report showed that figures for Edinburgh and Glasgow were particularly high. Finding a property to rent in the capital was described as “very challenging” with rents up a material 15.1% to a record £1283.

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In Glasgow, the average property to rent stands at £997, a 13% YoY rise which is down from the 16% annual growth record in the last quarter.

Dundee also posted a new highest ever average rental price of £767 per month, up 15.3% YoY - meaning for the first time it had a higher average rental price than Aberdeen at £738 (a 4.4% YoY rise).

The news comes as the cost-of-living crisis is mounting pressure on Scottish households, with energy prices tipped to rise to £3554 from October, then rise to £4650 from January.

The report has sparked grave concerns among campaigners over how communities will cope with the combination of soaring rental and energy prices.

Alison Watson, director of Shelter Scotland, said that the crisis was “inflicting misery on so many people”.

She added: “Scotland is in the grip of a housing emergency, which is devastating communities across the country. These figures are simply more evidence of that grim reality.

“The housing emergency existed before the pandemic and before the cost of living crisis which is inflicting misery on so many people. However, the solution remains the same; build more social homes.

“Decades of underinvestment in social housing has driven the housing emergency and reversing that decline is the only way to end it.

“A warm, safe, genuinely affordable home is a fundamental right. The only way ensure that right is upheld is by rapidly delivering the social housing Scotland so desperately needs.”

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Meanwhile, Citizens Advice Scotland (CAS) has said that advice given on rents among their network had gone up by a third and that views on their site for advice about landlords wanting to raise rents had gone up by a staggering 159%.

Aoife Derry, a spokesperson for CAS, said: “It is clear that renters are feeling the squeeze as hard as anyone, and it’s about to get worse with the upcoming energy cap rises.

"We believe that part of the housing market needs to remain cheap enough for anyone to afford. That means being priced at Local Housing Allowance levels or even under.

“Having a decent roof over your head is the foundation to everything in life, and being at risk of losing your home throws everything into turmoil.”