Indicators suggest the UK rental market ‘is set for a swift comeback’

Indicators suggest the UK rental market ‘is set for a swift comeback’

Todays other news
Rachel Reeves's first Budget will increase inflation by up to...
Another council is expected to propose selective licensing with landlords...
The average rent arrears claim climbed to £2,064 in Q3...
The Housing Secretary has suggested she wants to stop new...
verage UK house prices nudged up 0.2% in October says...


Online visits and engagement by homebuyers and tenants in the UK has dropped 4.1% over the past six months as many people have been unable to follow through with their search due to the property industry lockdown, but there is now room for growth. 

The latest research by Spotahome shows that the UK saw the eighth largest decline in online property market activity of 28 European countries based on the leading online portals for each nation, with just Malta, Croatia, Slovenia, Luxembourg, Italy, Belgium and Greece seeing a greater drop.

In contrast, Austria (7.8%), Finland (7.8%) and Sweden (7.4%) saw the highest average monthly increase in online property market activity. 

Although many high street agents have tried to pivot with lockdown market restrictions, other fully digital platforms have remained largely unaffected, with Spotahome seeing website traffic increase consistently for seven straight weeks.

But following its reopening last week, the UK property market is widely expected to bounce back, according to Spotahome. 

Jack Kuecker, Spotahome’s director for UK and Ireland, said: “It’s interesting to see how the severity of the current pandemic has impacted property market sentiment across Europe. This is, of course, influenced by the varying levels of lockdown restrictions, with some nations maintaining a business as usual stance while others have ceased market activity completely.  

“The good news is the most recent market indicators suggest the UK market is set for a swift comeback. We’ve already seen a sustained level of activity across our platform for the duration of the UK lockdown; both domestic and international tenants are keen to find rental properties.”

The UK is home to the sixth highest proportion of renters of all 28 European nations, with 35% of the nation reliant on the sector to put a roof over their heads.

There should also be plenty of stock to satisfy this demand, as the latest figures show there are currently over 100,000 rental properties listed across the UK’s 23 major cities despite wider market conditions.

Spotahome believes the UK rental market will see a swift return to form now that industry restrictions have eased. 

Kuecker added: “In the current climate, tenants are embracing the additional sense of safety that comes with contactless viewings as it allows them to progress with their search without visiting the property. This is already something that the latest generation of renters are becoming accustomed to and for future generations, a shift towards 100% digital renting could quite easily become the new norm.

“Our foundation as a business has always facilitated a completely digital approach to renting. However, it’s highly likely that the events of the last few months will now act as a catalyst within the property sector, accelerating the digitalisation seen over previous years and evolving industry practices to operate on an almost completely digital basis.”

Rankings – average monthly change in total visits and engagement between November 2019 to April 2020

Nation

Property portal

Average monthly change (Nov19 to Apr20)

Austria

https://www.immobilienscout24.at/

7.8%

Finland

https://www.etuovi.com/

7.8%

Sweden

https://www.hemnet.se/

7.4%

Estonia

https://www.kv.ee/

5.9%

Czechia

https://www.sreality.cz/

5.9%

Denmark

https://www.boligsiden.dk/

4.3%

Netherlands

https://www.funda.nl/

4.0%

Portugal

https://www.idealista.pt/

2.8%

Hungary

https://ingatlan.com/

1.6%

Germany

https://www.immobilienscout24.de/

1.2%

Romania

https://www.imobiliare.ro/

-0.2%

Lithuania

https://www.aruodas.lt/

-0.2%

Slovakia

https://www.nehnutelnosti.sk/

-0.5%

Poland

https://www.otodom.pl/

-0.7%

Latvia

https://www.city24.lv/

-1.3%

Ireland

https://www.daft.ie/

-1.5%

Spain

https://www.idealista.com/

-1.8%

Cyprus

https://www.bazaraki.com

-2.0%

Bulgaria

https://www.imot.bg/

-2.0%

France

https://www.seloger.com/

-3.3%

United Kingdom

https://www.rightmove.co.uk/

-4.1%

Malta

https://www.remax-malta.com/

-5.0%

Croatia

https://www.njuskalo.hr

-5.2%

Slovenia

https://www.nepremicnine.net/

-5.6%

Luxembourg

https://www.immotop.lu/

-6.2%

Italy

https://www.immobiliare.it/

-6.3%

Belgium

https://www.immoweb.be

-6.7%

Greece

https://www.xe.gr/property/

-7.2%

Portal visits and engagement over time sourced from Similarweb

 

 

Nation

Percentage of people that rent (%)

Germany

48.5

Austria

44.6

Denmark

39.5

Sweden

35.9

France

34.9

United Kingdom

34.9

Netherlands

31.0

Cyprus

29.9

Ireland

29.7

Luxembourg

28.8

Finland

28.4

Italy

27.6

Belgium

27.3

Greece

26.5

Portugal

25.5

Slovenia

24.9

Spain

23.7

Czechia

21.3

Latvia

18.4

Malta

18.4

Estonia

17.6

Bulgaria

16.4

Poland

16.0

Hungary

14.0

Lithuania

10.1

Croatia

9.9

Slovakia

8.7

Romania

3.6

Source: Trading Economics

 

 

City

Total listings (May 2020)

London

53,459

Oxford

1,460

Cambridge

810

Manchester

5,160

Liverpool

3,164

Birmingham

5,184

Nottingham

1,846

Leeds

4,981

Sheffield

2,797

Leicester

1,906

Newcastle

3,805

Southampton

2,619

Portsmouth

943

Bournemouth

1,073

Plymouth

951

Bristol

1,481

Cardiff

2,508

Swansea

1,188

Newport

193

Glasgow

1,690

Edinburgh

2,521

Aberdeen

1,256

Belfast

24

All cities

101013

Rental stock figures sourced from Rightmove and Zoopla

 

Share this article ...

Join the conversation: Login and have your say

Want to comment on this story? Our focus is on providing a platform for you to share your insights and views and we welcome contributions. If any post is considered to victimise, harass, degrade or intimidate an individual or group of individuals, then the post may be deleted and the individual immediately banned from posting in future.
Recommended for you
Related Articles
A third of homes for sale on Zoopla are currently...
2024 will turn out to be a bumper year for...
Shock figures show many full-time workers priced out of home...
Time To Sell Up? Housing market stronger now than last...
Council will pay part of tenants’ rent to private landlords...
A landlord who persistently failed to license several rented properties...
A mortgage chief is warning that thousands of buy to...
Recommended for you
Latest Features
Britain’s 12 million renters won’t be forgotten by Labour -...
Some 20% of households are now made up of people...
Energy Performance Certificate ratings are used to measure how energy...
Sponsored Content
Landlords, if you haven't heard of it until now, it's...
As a seasoned landlord, you've likely witnessed the UK property...

Send to a friend

In order to send this article to a friend you must first login. Click on the button below to login or sign up.

No one likes pop-ups ...
But while you're here