Sadiq Khan’s plan to build thousands of rent-controlled homes could save ‘key workers’ in London up to £600 per month on their rent, according to City Hall.The mayor on Monday launched a consultation on the plan, which aims to see at least 6,000 such properties start construction by 2030.To ensure the new homes are “genuinely affordable”, Mr Khan is proposing to set the rents at 40 per cent of average key worker household incomes after tax.This is an established measure of affordability, mirroring what is already enshrined in the mayor’s London Plan - an official document which guides future development in the capital.Mr Khan’s team said that, when compared with renting from a private landlord, this model could save key workers up to £600 per month on their rent.The figure comes from the fact that the average market rent for a two-bedroom London home in 2023 was £1,825pcm, whereas a rent-controlled two-bedroom property would have a benchmark rate in 2023/24 of £1,236pcm.Annual rent increases would potentially be set in line with wage rises, or at two per cent each year, depending on which is higher.The mayor has already produced a list setting out who he considers to be a key worker, based on definitions drawn up by the Office for National Statistics.It includes people working in education and childcare, such as nursery assistants, school secretaries and caretakers; in the ‘food and necessary goods’ sector, like retail cashiers, shelf-fillers and shopkeepers; and in health and social care, such as nurses, midwives and paramedics.
