Private housing rental prices have increased significantly at a regional and national level since 2008. The private rented sector plays a number of roles in Oxfordshire, ranging from meeting the housing needs of households in receipt of Benefit/Local Housing Allowance (LHA) system, through lone parents, cohabiting couples, younger households to international professionals.

In terms of local tenure differences in the housing offer, the data presented in it shows the tenure profile by sub-market area in 2011. Generally, the proportion of households that rent is higher in the towns of South and Vale than in the rural areas. This is to be expected, since the rural areas of South and Vale generally have larger, more expensive dwellings. The smaller properties which are more generally associated with private renting are concentrated in the towns. The private rented sector has been a key growth sector in the housing market across England between 2001 and 2011, linked to a number of factors including the availability of mortgage finance and buy-to-let mortgages, and the attractiveness of housing as an investment.