Research from estate agents Your Move and Reeds Rains revealed that tenants in severe arrears of more than two months fell to 65,500 against 71,700 in the same period last year.
As a proportion of all tenants, those in serious arrears, have also improved, standing at just 1.4% in Q3 2014, compared to 1.6% of all tenants in Q3 2013.
This means 98.6% of tenants in the private rented sector now avoid falling into significant rental arrears.
David Newnes, director of Your Move and Reeds Rains said improvements in the job market had helped. But he added wages would need to rise faster for most households to feel the full effects of economic recovery.
Improvements in the most serious rental arrears also tallied with the latest figures on overall levels of late rent, including shorter lapses on payments.
Figures from property services firm LSL showed overall tenant arrears of any duration stood at 7.2% as of September 2014, down from 8.5% in September 2013.
Newnes said”The private rented sector has mustered enough new capacity to meet, in part, the growing demand for affordable housing, through the greatest economic depression in modern times.
“This isn’t just about those relatively prosperous households forced to put ownership plans temporarily on hold. For many thousands of others, with far tougher monthly budgets, private tenancies have also provided a lifeline. For many renting is now their chosen route as it provides flexibility and mobility.”
