Tenants have rebuilt their financial position over the last year, with the total number facing serious rental arrears falling by a 9% over the last twelve months, according to the latest Tenant Arrears Tracker by estate agency chains Your Move and Reeds Rains, part of LSL Property Services.

In absolute terms, those more than two months behind on their rent now number just 65,200. This compares to 71,700 tenants at least two months in arrears in the same period last year, or an annual improvement of 6,500 households who no longer face the potential of eviction.

As a proportion of all tenants, those in serious arrears of more than two months have also improved, standing at just 1.4% in Q3 2014, compared to 1.6% of all tenants in Q3 2013. This means an overwhelming 98.6% of tenants in the private rented sector now avoid falling into significant rental arrears.

David Newnes, director of estate agents Your Move and Reeds Rains, comments: “One explanation is the improving jobs market, with the improvement in unemployment constantly outperforming expectations. Wages would however need to rise faster for most households to feel the full effects of economic recovery.”