RENT RISES DROP FOR FIRST TIME THIS YEAR

The amount of letting agents reporting rent rises has dropped for the first time this year, according to recent research from the Association of Residential Letting Agents (ARLA).

ARLA’s August private rental sector report states that supply has also fallen to levels seen in June, following a surge in July. The typical ARLA agent had 178 properties for rent in August, compared with 189 in July.

However, the amount of prospective tenants in the private rental sector rose slightly in August. Letting

agents reported an average of 36 house hunters registered per

branch, up from 35 in July. 

Just three in ten (33%) of agents experienced monthly rent increases in August. This is down from 37% in July. In the South West, two out of every five agents (42%) witnessed rent prices rising in August, up four percentage points from the previous month. Only 12% of agents reported rent price growth in the North West during this period.

Tenants in Wales are also paying more in rent, with the amount of landlords putting prices up increasing by three times from July. In August, 36% of letting agents in Wales saw prices rise, up by 25% from July, when only 11% of agents reported growth.

In London, the number of homes available to rent continued to decrease in August, driving demand levels higher and putting added pressure on hopeful tenants.Only 110 properties are registered per

letting agent branch in the capital, down from 117 in July. Finding a rental home in

London is becoming increasingly challenging.

“Our findings this month are good news for the majority of tenants, as less are experiencing rent hikes. “However, a third of agents are still seeing landlords pushing rents up, which reflects the sorry state of affairs in the market.” – David Cox, Managing Director at ARLA

Cox continues: “With increasing pressure on the dwindling supply of housing and the number of house hunters growing, rent increases are unfortunately very common – as one in three tenants are experiencing. “Despite the fact they have fallen this month, it is likely they will go back up again over the next few months.”1

 1 http://www.propertyindustryeye.com/rent-increases-fall-for-first-time-this-year-says-arla/