What I Rent: We pay £3,700 a month for our two-bedroom London flat

Welcome back to What I Rent – Metro’s tenant diary series exploring what renting is like in the UK and further afield.

This week, we’re in Aldgate, East London, meeting Pedro Henrique, 28, and Fiona Ann, 27, at their two-bedroom rented flat.

Having met in 2020 when they were both living in Spain, the pair fell head over heels and subsequently moved back to London together, where they’d each lived previously.

They started out by the river in Vauxhall, but after realising that they wanted more from their living space, the couple made the move to East London. Now, they’re both less than a 30-minute walk away from their offices, and have their own balcony and plenty of space to host friends.

Here’s what Pedro had to say about their renting journey…

Tell us about yourself!

My name is Pedro, and I’m Brazilian but have lived most of my life abroad. I’ve moved 10 times through a total of six different countries. Over the years I’ve kept coming back to London. My partner Fiona is American and had previously lived in London.

We met in 2020 when we were both living in Spain. At the very beginning of our relationship, Fiona got Covid so we decided to quarantine together.

We spent two weeks together when we were still very much getting to know each other. Luckily, we really enjoyed our time together and have been together ever since.

Where is your home based?

We live at Alma, a Zone 1 rental community located in Aldgate East between the City and East London’s creative neighbourhoods. 

What kind of property do you rent and how long have you been there?  

We have a two-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment. We moved to Alma in January 2025.

How much do you pay to live here?

We pay £3,700 a month between the two of us.

And what do you get for what you pay?

We wanted to live in a modern building that was within walking distance from our jobs. We liked that Alma had a gym, a roof terrace, a workspace and more.

We also valued having people on-site at the building 24/7. At our last place, we used to get packages stolen from time to time which was always quite a hassle.

Do you feel like you have a good deal?

Alma is an excellent place to live. The amenities are great and feel almost like an extension of your home. The staff is also incredibly friendly and always willing to lend a helping hand.

We also love that Alma has partnerships with local businesses that encourage us to get out and try different things in the area. 

What do you love to do in your flat? 

Fiona enjoys reading in the winter garden and cosying up in our big chair out there. I enjoy watching movies, and TV shows and playing on my PlayStation. Together, we love to cook meals together and play cards or backgammon. 

What do you think of the area? 

We really love the sense of culture and the number of local businesses in the area as we think it’s quite hard to find that local sense in such a central area. Fiona’s a big fan of Libreria Bookshop and I love the Classic Football Shirt store.

We wanted a place from which we could both walk to our respective offices in 30 minutes or less. We’re a one-minute walk from Aldgate East station and five minutes from Aldgate station which gives us access to several train lines. We’re also within walking distance of Liverpool Street.

How did you find this property?

We found it browsing on Rightmove. I had been looking for a long time for a modern building in Zone 1 and had a hard time finding options that excited us. We were so happy to come across Alma. 

How have you made this place feel like home? 

We’ve been decorating the place quite a bit, hanging up some paintings and family photos. As we have two bedrooms we made the second one an office/guest room and we’ve also created a very cosy space in our winter garden to read books and relax.

We both love to host people and already have friends lined up to come stay with us as the second bedroom is quite spacious!

Have you found it difficult to decorate when renting? Is your landlord happy with you doing bits? 

We’ve found that having our walls decorated is an easy way to make the place feel like our home. We’ve got a mix of art we’ve picked up from different trips, family pictures, and postcards from loved ones.

Fiona’s grandma is an antique dealer, so we’ve got some pieces from her around the house that we think add character and a bit of grounding force to quite a modern apartment. 

Do you feel like you have enough space? 

We were previously living in Vauxhall. When we moved there, I was mainly working from home, so we ended up prioritising a bigger apartment vs location.

Looking back, we’ve realised that though our previous flat had a lot of space, it wasn’t set up super well. We’ve been really happy with how the space is designed at Alma, even little things like the closet shelving is super functional.

What would you like to have but don’t with this flat? 

We would love to have even more sunlight, but understand that that’s a tall order in London! 

Are there any problems with the home you have to deal with? 

We had some slightly oversensitive leak detection but this was very quickly dealt with by the building staff.

Do you have plans to move again any time soon? What about buying a place?

No plans to move anytime soon. We’re not thinking of buying a place currently, but it’s something we’re considering down the road.

Shall we have a look around?

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