Barking and Dagenham are among the least affordable areas of London to rent in, according to a report, with tenants spending nearly half their take-home pay on rent.

Tenant and landlord services provider Canopy found that renters in Dagenham spend 47.1 per cent of their net pay on their rent, compared to the national average of 38 per cent.

With the average monthly rent cost per tenant standing at £1,011, Dagenham places third in the list of London's least affordable places for renters.

Renters in Barking spend 45.2pc of their take-home pay on rent - with the average monthly rent standing at £994 - which puts them fifth on the list.

Canopy's report found Barnet to be the least affordable area to rent in, with renters there spending 48.73pc of their take-home pay on rent.

Enfield and Harrow make up the rest of the top five least affordable London areas to rent in.

According to the report, which analysed nearly 50,000 data points, the average rent to income ratio in London is slightly above the UK average, at 39.9pc.

The Canopy report found Uxbridge and Bromley to have rent to income ratios in line with the UK average, both at around 38pc.

Meanwhile, across London, it said 30pc of tenants spend more than half of their salary on rent.

Canopy chief executive Chris Hutchinson said: "It is sobering to see that more than a quarter of UK tenants are spending the vast majority of their take-home salary on rental payments, and it neatly encapsulates the tricky situation that many tenants with aspirations of home ownership are in."

Mr Hutchinson highlighted that, in stark contrast to renters, homeowners are spending an average of 18pc on mortgage payments.

Mr Hutchinson said that this extra "financial pressure on renters" means that they are less able to save money.

He added: "Despite the price stability that further regulation would have on the market, there would likely be additional disincentives for landlords, leading to more leaving the market, and therefore reducing rental housing supply, or those remaining being less inclined to adequately maintain their properties.

"Where we could see positive change is towards longer tenancies for those who desire them, fostering greater security for families and communities."