April Round-up!

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YOUR SNAPSHOT OF THE LETTINGS AND PROPERTY MARKET FOR ALL OF APRIL, FOCUSSED ON LONDON AND THE REST OF THE UK!

  • A survey from the Deposit Protection Service (DPS) reveals 23% of tenants are struggling to pay their rent, with 51% concerned about their ability to make future payments.
  • Goodlord’s latest Rental Index for March shows the increase in rent and decrease in voids to be slight, but the average rent is up 0.14% and voids decreased by a day.
  • Rents slowly increasing is echoed by data from HomeLet Rental Index, with the demand for lettings remaining remarkably high.
  • The rental market has been investigated by the BBC and Zoopla. The investigation found in the last 18 months, agents have less properties available; it suggests there isn’t a lack of stock, but that the demand is so high.
  • HomeLet’s rental index shows the average UK rent is rising after a drop at the start of the year. On average, rents across the nation have risen by 0.8%, however in just London they are up 0.2% from the previous month.
  • Goodlord reports the lettings market to be at a standstill with their latest index showing minimal movement regarding rent and voids.
  • With the deadline for the EPC targets being extended to 2028, Knight Frank predict Landlord’s will spend a maximum of £10,000 per property to bring their ratings up to a C.
  • A study by data firm Outra has found that 4.5 million rental properties across the UK would be unlettable following the governments change to EPC legislation. 841,000 of the EPC’s which were rated a D or below were in London. This may mean a further squeeze in the market as Landlords look to sell rather than upgrade their property.
  • Research by Fine & Country reveals the current market trends to continue in to spring, with rental growth and tenant demand remaining strong whilst stock levels continue to decrease. The research information found that the rental growth in London is 21% annually, which is the biggest in the country.
  • Tenants are opting to renew their existing tenancies rather than move on and battle it out for new ones, research data by JLL shows. This is one of the reasons for falling rental stock across the market.
  • Benham and Reeves challenge the data of the average London rent provided by the Office of National Statistics. B&R claim that the actual average asking rent for properties is £2,285 pcm; 36.6% more than the £1,672 reported by the ONS.
  • Data from HomeLet shows rental prices increasing by 1.3% in April.