rents
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Latest property news
Record number of tenants secure rent reductions
The number of people securing rent reductions rose to three percent of all tenants during August, the highest number since the Association of Residential Letting Agents (ARLA) began keeping records. “The rising cost of renting, especially in major cities such as London, is an ongoing issue in both the buying and letting market so it’s promising to see small steps towards better affordability for renters,” says David Cox, ARLA’s Managing Director (pictured, below). The rental renegotiation increase is a jump from 2.1% of all tenants in July and is a surprising blip among a set of otherwise strong figures for the sector released today by ARLA. This includes news that demand for private rented property rose to 37 prospective tenants registered at each branch, and that year-on-year the number of properties registered to let with each branch was up from 178 to 183 or nearly 3%. ARLA also asked its members about the Brexit vote and its effect on the lettings market and 72% of agents said rents have remained the same since the vote, while 63% said demand had remained the same (but 17% said rents had gone down). Some 67% of agents said supply had not changed. “Although…
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Resources
Brexit uncertainty fails to halt rent rises
Population growth and limited supply continue to underpin the private rental sector, but rents rose at a slower pace during the first half of the year than in 2015, the HomeLet Rental Index reveals.
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Latest property news
Rents still rising
Demand outstripping supply leads to average rents rising by 4 per cent in London and 2.3 per cent across the rest of the UK.
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Uncategorised
UK rents continue to rise
Rents on new tenancies rose across most parts of the UK over the three months to February, led by gains in the capital, fresh figures show.
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Uncategorised
UK rents increase
Rents on new tenancies rose across most parts of the UK over the three months to January, led by gains in the South East of England and the East Midlands, but growth continued to slow in the capital, new figures show. Fresh data from the latest HomeLet Rental Index reveals that rent prices for new tenancies in Greater London increased by 6.2 per cent in the three months to January 2016 compared to the corresponding period in 2015, marking the slowest rate of growth seen in Greater London since March 2014. “It’s notable that there has been a further fall in the rate at which average rents in the Greater London area are rising. In recent years, the capital has seen much faster rates of increase than the rest of the country, but it may be that an affordability ceiling has now been reached in London,” said Martin Totty (left), Barbon Insurance Group’s Chief Executive Officer. In contrast, rent prices in other regions continue to increase steadily with the South East of England and the East Midlands witnessing the highest rent price rises in the three months to January 2016, at 7.2 per cent and 6.8 per cent respectively. In…
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Housing Market
Rents rising at quickest pace since 2011
Rents across England and Wales increased by 3.4 per cent in December taking the average to £794 a month, according to latest buy-to-let index from Your Move and Reeds Rains. On an annual basis, rents increased in eight out of 10 regions led by the East of England with a rise of 7.8 per cent, London was up 6.3 per cent, and the East Midlands up 4.7 per cent. Rents dropped by 1 per cent in Wales and by 2.6 per cent in the South East. The figures also reveal that Yorkshire & Humber and West Midlands both saw rents reach a record high in December. The rent increases recorded in 2015 came about despite a month-on-month fall in the latest market rents, dropping 0.6 per cent between November and December. Average rents are now £22 per month below September’s all-time record high of £816pcm, reflecting a softening in tenant demand in the run-up to Christmas. A breakdown of the data reveals that six out of 10 regions monitored saw rents decline on a monthly basis, led by London, with rents down 1.6 per cent. By contrast, Wales saw a 1.8 per cent increase in rents. They also rose by…
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Associations & Bodies
Shelter bashes PRS again
Housing charity Shelter Cymru is calling for an end to excessive letting agency fees, as more than a third of renters in Wales face charges of more than £200. The charity is launching an online survey for tenants who are in the private rented sector to share their experiences of the prices and hidden costs they have been charged. Current figures show more a quarter of renters in Wales who have used a letting agency have been charged what the charity calls ‘excessive fees.’ It is also says that in some cases tenants have been charged as much as one month’s rent, as well as paying for the bond and rent in advance. Letting agents argue these charges are in place to cover business and administration costs. However Shelter Cymru say they should be paid by the businesses themselves or by the landlords who are making a profit. “These letting agents fees are so unfair on tenants and are causing serious financial hardship when they have to find hundreds of pounds to cover the cost of moving. This makes renting impossible for some people, and finding good quality accommodation in the private rented sector well out of their reach. It’s…
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Housing Market
Rents cool off as tenant demand softens
Rents across England and Wales fell by an average of 0.9 per cent in November taking the average to £799 a month, according to latest buy-to-let index from Your Move and Reeds Rains. Average rents are now £17 per month below September’s all-time record high of £816pcm, reflecting a slight drop in demand from tenants seeking rental accommodation. A breakdown of the data reveals that six out of 10 regions monitored saw rents decline on a monthly basis, led by southern regions. The South East saw rents drop by 3 per cent month-on-month and they were down 2 per cent in the South West and 1.2 per cent in London. By contrast, Wales witnessed a 2.9 per cent rise in rents. They also rose by 1 per cent in the East Midlands, the West Midlands saw a 0.4 per cent increase and Yorkshire and the Humber a 0.2 per cent hike. But despite the recent fall, on average, rents have increased significantly over the past 12 months, up 4 per cent compared to November 2014, led by gains in London where rents are up 8.9 per cent year-on-year. Rents in East of England rose by 8.4 per cent. They are…
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Uncategorised
Rent growth slows
Rents on new tenancies remained flat or dropped marginally over the three months to November in 10 out of the 12 UK regions compared to the three months to October, according to research from HomeLet. The latest index data shows that the average UK rent, excluding London, on a tenancy signed during the three months to November was £743 a month, down 0.7 per cent on the previous three month period. In Greater London the average rent was £1,544, down 1 per cent. Only two regions saw rents rise over the three months to November. In Yorkshire and Humberside, rents on new tenancies rose by 0.8 per cent to £626 a month, while in the East Midlands rents were 1.2 per cent up at £635 a month. The study by Homelet also revealed that 91 per cent of landlords do not plan to increase rents in the next six months, while over the next 12 months, just around a third of landlords are planning to increase the amount they charge on their homes. “The research reveals the vast majority of landlords enjoy strong relationships with their tenants and are keen to keep them,” said Martin Totty, Barbon Insurance Group’s Chief…
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Housing Market
Stamp duty hikes will push up rents, says IFS
Fewer new homes will be built and rents will rise as a consequence of the hike in stamp duty on buy-to-let unveiled in last week’s Spending Review, the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) has predicted. The Chancellor George Osborne announced that a 3 per cent rise in stamp duty for buyers of second homes and buy-to-let landlords will come into play from April 2016, almost trebling the purchase tax on a typical £275,000 buy-to-let home from £3,750 to £10,800. Osborne believes that the new surcharge on stamp duty for landlords and those acquiring second homes will raise £1billion for Treasury by 2021. The tax change will almost certainly result in an inevitable rush of people trying to secure buy-to-let properties before April’s deadline, which could push up home prices in the short-term. But should the buy-to-let market slow thereafter, as many analysts anticipate, it may enable more first-time buyers, squeezed out by investor-driven purchasers, to buy property, but not if there is a major reduction in the construction of new homes. Stuart Adams, a Senior Research Economist at the IFS, projects that the tax increase could deter property developers, with less reason to invest, slowing down the building of new…
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