Rental market now ‘in full swing’ after strong recovery from pandemic low
The rental market has returned to “full swing” from the pandemic low as stock levels fell dramatically from this time last year.
With all Covid restrictions lifted, tenants are once again looking for a place to call home, with just 64,839 rental properties listed across these 21 major UK cities, according to numbers shared by Octane Capital.
Pre-pandemic levels of available rentals sat at just over 80,000, which rose steeply to 96,000 in January 2020.
This hit a meteoric high of more than 171,000 at the end of that year, representing a 107 per cent increase, before cooling in the end of 2021. Stock levels fell to 145,000 by this time last year, and are now under 65,000.
“The rental market revival is in full swing”, said Octane Capital’s CEO, Jonathan Samuels.
The removal of restrictions “will have only bolstered this confidence further” and the return of tenants “will make for extremely welcome reading by the nation’s landlords who have suffered greatly due to dwindling demand during the pandemic, forcing them to massively reduce their rental income expectations while also suffering from lengthy void periods.
He said landlords “couldn’t find ourselves in a more different place at present and if anything, there is now a shortage of suitable rental stock to meet this returning demand.
“As a result, we’re seeing sharp growth in rental incomes and while this won’t negate the impact of the last two years, it will certainly help steady the ship moving forward.”