Tenants opt to stay put as rents continue to surge

A lack of homes to rent is causing tenants to remain in their homes, research reveals.

In its latest report, Propertymark says that 73% of letting agents say they have seen an increase in renters wanting to renew tenancies rather than move over the past year.

They state: “With the recent lack of stock, it suggests many tenants are preferring to stay put rather than move.”

And there’s more bad news for tenants looking for somewhere to live – agents say that a new record has been set for rents continuing to rise.

Propertymark says that 82% of its members have reported month-on-month rent rises for July, the highest ever.

The organisation says that ‘Pressure on rents has been steadfast since spring last year.’

‘Only 11 properties available for renting’

In their Private Rented Sector Report for July, Propertymark says there were 127 new prospective tenants registering, on average, for each member branch – but there are only 11 properties available for rent in each branch, on average.

Propertymark says that this new peak in the number of tenants looking for somewhere to rent is fuelling the growth in tenants wanting to renew their tenancy rather than having to move.

The organisation says that this is more evidence of the ‘Big Stay Put’.

‘Private rental market continues to be battered by the perfect storm’

Nathan Emerson, the chief executive of Propertymark, said: “The private rental market continues to be battered by the perfect storm of high demand, low availability and affordability issues that shows no sign of easing.

“Governments across the UK are all engaged in a tenant-focussed reform of their private rental sectors.”

He added: “They also need to consider the heavy tax burden on property owners, the impact of more profitable and less regulated short-term lets, many of which stand empty for part of the year, and the lack of new homes being built to cope with the varied needs of a growing population.”

The report also highlights that the average number of new applicants being registered per branch has been slowly increasing since February and with an average of 11 homes to rent, that’s the same figure as the previous month.