Landlords see a surge in demand as less choice pushes up rents

Landlords have seen a surge in tenant demand with tenants chasing fewer properties in the private rented sector (PRS), a survey reveals.

The research by bridging broker Finbri found that 71% of landlords saw higher demand last year.

Tenant demand is outstripping supply and landlords with two-bed rental properties are on the market for 10 days less than they were pre-pandemic when the average was 25 days.

The survey of 755 landlords also found that 25% of landlords said that demand had ‘significantly’ increased.

‘Lack of rental property supply’

Finbri says: “The lack of rental property supply is a key reason for the increase in demand.

“Landlords are leaving the market, not enough rental properties are being built, and tenants are finding it increasingly difficult to move from renting to home ownership, contributing to increased demand for available properties.”

Tenant demand in London is strongest with 83% of landlords experiencing an increase.

Landlords identified increased demand

The South West closely followed London, where 82% of landlords identified increased demand.

The only regions where less than 70% of landlords experienced increased demand were Yorkshire and the Humber and Wales.

Even then, landlords in these regions experienced a 67% and 63% increase in demand, respectively.

The average UK rent

The market imbalance is leading to rising rents and the firm says that the average UK rent has climbed by 7.2% to £1,223 per month.

Finbri’s survey found that 51% of landlords will raise their rents to cover additional expenses.

Despite increasing demand, landlords are still selling up with 32% offloading at least one of their rental properties last year.