Trying to read rental market and predict it is a bit like trying to read tea leaves. There are so many moving parts that keep shifting, each of which could have a big impact on the rents (and thus rental yield) that you can achieve. The latest research out from the Association of Residential Letting Agents (ARLA) had some good news. Their study found that balance between supply and demand for rental properties is improving for landlords. In the last three months of 2009 landlords and agents surveyed said they had more tenants than they had properties.
This is a huge shift from earlier in the year when there was a massive flood of rental properties on the market. One reason is the turmoil in the banking markets which have led to a lot of people struggling to get mortgages to buy their own homes. Many took advantage of the pickup in the property market towards the end of the year to sell flats and the like but have been unable to trade up because of the shortage of mortgages. The data fits with what I’ve just heard from some friends. Before they married they each owned a small London flat. Now that they are together and have a child they need more place so have sold the two small flats. They now have a great deposit and are looking to buy a terrace house or a garden flat. But until they do they have to keep on renting.
The other good news is that rental voids are falling on average. The move down wasn’t huge but the survey showed properties are standing empty for 3.9 weeks on average compared with 4 weeks in the summer.
Even More Signs of Revival in Rental Markets
by on 28. Jan, 2010 in Market news
Tags: Arla, rent forecasts