The North West and South West of England experienced the strongest levels of tenant demand in a period which has seen the most buoyant growth since 2016.
A survey by buy-to-let lender Paragon Bank revealed tenant demand hit a four-year high in Q3 of 2020 with 29% of landlords reporting rising interest from renters during this period.
This was the highest number of respondents reporting increased demand since the third quarter of 2016 and came as one in ten of the 700 landlords quizzed reported ‘significant growth’.
But it was in the regions of the North West and South West where rental numbers were most buoyant with the survey finding 44% of landlords had seen a growth. This was closely followed by the East Midlands where 40% of landlords reported higher demand from tenants.
In Central London, meanwhile, just 16% of landlords saw growth in the last three months. Growth was slightly stronger in outer London areas, with a quarter of landlords recording rising demand.
Richard Rowntree, managing director of mortgages at Paragon Bank, said the record levels of tenant demand being reported by the likes of Rightmove and Zoopla when the housing market reopened in May had started to feed through to landlords as tenants reassessed where and how they wanted to live.
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Central London, he explained, was seeing the impact of Airbnb-style landlords moving property into long-term lettings, as well as a desire for larger properties.
Rowntree continued: “Outside of London, demand is buoyant from the East of England, where 27% of landlords are reporting growth in demand, to the North East and South West, where nearly half of respondents are telling us they are seeing positive growth.”
He added: “We expect this to continue for the foreseeable future and there’s a number of factors we’re seeing at play.
“For example, there’s been growth in homeowners taking advantage of strong prices and selling to move into rented, people are looking to secure a new home ahead of entering a potential second lockdown, whilst students left it late to secure property for the new academic year.”
By Kate Saines
Source: Mortgage Finance Gazette
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