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Rental market faces ‘perfect storm’ as landlords withdraw, LRG warns

Firm's lettings director says rental homes will be in short supply and rents continue to climb fast unless more landlords come forward.

David Callaghan

The rental market is facing a ‘perfect storm’ of increased demand from tenants frustrated by a plummeting supply, a LRG director has warned.

Allison Thompson (pictured), National Lettings Managing Director for Leaders Romans Group, says tenant enquiries had tripled, and predicted ‘turbulent’ times ahead unless more landlords come forward offering homes to rent.

She says legislative changes and a buoyant sales market made renting less attractive to landlords. The shortage of rental properties was causing rents to climb, she explained.

“Many tenants who may have looked to move in the coming months have instead decided to stay put to wait out the storm. With the rising cost of living and increased demand for rentals putting some people off moving entirely, again there is less churn in rental stock,” she said.

“As a result, we’re seeing the ‘Great Grounding’, with people unable to move or choosing to stay in their existing rental property for longer, to avoid the risk of not being able to find a new home or paying more elsewhere,” she added.

Buy-to-let

Thompson asked landlords to consider the long-term benefits of buy-to-let, and look at areas such as along the new Elizabeth train line in London.

Research by Propertymark published earlier this month found that agents have seen the available rentals on their books halve from an average of 30 to 15.

New rental listings dropped by 9% to 51,411 in the first quarter of this year compared to the same period in 2021, according to TwentyCi. Rents have also rocketed, with an average rise of £150 per month.

June 24, 2022

One comment

  1. As predicted years ago – yet the gov plough on destroying the market. Wait util the next white paper comes in – our will all go airbnb.

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