Fewer Tenants See Rent Rises
Fewer tenants saw their rents rise in November, the lowest level since February, new data reveals.
The findings from Arla Propertymark highlights that November was the third consecutive month in which the number of renters who saw their rent increase falling.
The organisation says that 21% of letting agents have reported that landlords increased the rent during the month, compared with 24% in the month before and 31% in September.
Despite this, the number of tenants who saw rents rise during November grew by 16% over November 2017's figure.
The association says this was, in part, down to a fall in rental stock supply, which was 4% down year-on-year.
Number of homes available for rent
The number of homes available for rent in November is the lowest recorded since April when supply was at 179 per branch and in November it was 183. In October, letting agents had 198 properties on their books.
Arla also says that tenant demand fell in November, with the number of those looking for a home dropping per branch to 55, down from an average of 71 in October.
The chief executive of Arla, David Cox, said: "It looks like tenants are taking control with the numbers of landlords pushing up rents falling for the third month. As we look ahead, things do not look as positive for renters."
Mr Cox says that rising costs are increasingly forcing landlords from the market which will, in turn, "push up rents and increase competition".
He added: "For market stability, we need to increase stock and make the market attractive for buy to let investors."
Letting agents urged to 'add value'
Meanwhile, one leading property entrepreneur says letting agents must 'add value' for their landlord clients in 2019 if they are to survive.
The chief executive of PayProp, Neil Cobbold, says agents must use technology and boost transparency and service levels to meet this need.
He points to new legislation and a challenging market as well as changing consumer habits and market consolidation as throwing up potential problems for agents.
He explained: "It will be important in 2019 for agents to approach the buy to let sector with a positive mindset and remind landlords why the rental market continues to be a good place for investment at every opportunity with the right agency partners.
"Agents will have to strive to retain clients while securing new business and provide landlords with an appealing proposition that is tech-enabled and transparent, and this will become a minimum requirement as landlords look to save money and time increasingly."
