Letting agents group provides probable reasons
Tenants are remaining in their rented properties for longer periods of time, data collected from Propertymark’s members for its Private Rented Sector Report showed, indicating signs of ongoing disparity in supply and demand.
Propertymark reported that tenants stay for an average of 23 months, or nearly two years, in their rented properties in March, up from 21 in February.
According to Nathan Emerson, chief executive at Propertymark, tenants are staying longer because they have very little choice when looking to move as stock levels remain low.
He added that fierce competition is pushing up prices for what is available, often making it unaffordable for many tenants to move.
“When an increase in tenants staying put for longer occurs, the churn of properties that would normally come back into the market begins to stagnate, feeding the issue further,” Emerson noted.
An average Propertymark member branch reported having just eight properties that were empty and freely available in March. February’s figure was even lower at only five.
Read more: UK rental market at “breaking point”.
Meanwhile, an average of 93 new tenants were registered per member branch in March, which has increased significantly compared to 78 per branch recorded in February.
Around 71% of member agents reported rent prices increasing, which is a slight decrease from the 74% recorded in February, but is still significantly higher than the same time last year, which stood at 60%.
Propertymark also disclosed that the UK average number of landlords that withdrew their properties in order to sell them stood at three per member branch in March, which is an increase from two in February.
“Agents have been warning of the adverse effects of landlords leaving what they feel to be a hostile market. Property investment, like any form of investment, needs to be financially viable and with adequate risk mitigation. Many landlords feel their rights are being eroded, meaning they are more likely to sell,” Emerson said.
