Search Results For: buy to rent sector

Nearly 81,000 Build to Rent units planned or completed in England

Published On: August 4, 2017 at 12:02 pm

Tags: build to rent,investment,private rental sector,tenants

Fresh Government figures show that there are 80,855 Build To Rent properties that have either been completed or are planned.

Data shows that investment in this region of the private rental sector could rise to £70bn, which could help to create 15,000 homes to rent each year until the year 2022.

In addition, it has the potential to reach a total of at least 240,000 homes built for the purpose of privately renting by 2030.

‘Unlocking’

These figures were revealed during the announcement of a £65m boost from the Government to ‘help unlock’ more than 7,600 homes in Wembley. At least 6,800 of these properties will be available to rent.

The Build to Rent sector has also received the backing of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors and the British Property Federation.

A joint statement said proposals under consideration with the Government include altering planning rules so councils must initiate greater forward planning of rental needs.

There are also proposals to introduce tenancies of three years or more, with these seen as more family-friendly than the more traditional six months tenancy often seen in buy-to-let.

Nearly 81,000 Build to Rent units planned or completed in England

Longer Tenancies

The British Property Federation says that 35,000 tenants have been offered tenancies of three years or more in recent years, ever since a greater emphasis was put on longer tenancies.

Chief Executive of the BPF Melanie Leech, said: ‘We fully support the introduction of affordable private rent, and the inclusion of build to rent and affordable private rent within the National Planning and Policy Framework and Planning Practice Guidance – a multi-tenure approach where all housing sectors receive the right policy support is critical to fixing the UK’s broken housing market.’[1]

Head of UK external affairs Geoff White also said: ‘The government’s proposals to boost supply across all tenures is a welcome acknowledgement of the extent of the housing challenges and the scale of the response required.’[1]

Housing and Planning Minister Alok Sharma observed: ‘Whether renting or owning all families should have the security they need to be able to plan for the future. That’s why as part of our plan to fix the broken housing market we’ve been taking action to create a bigger and better private rental market, supporting new Build To Rent developments so that tenants can have greater choice.’[1]

[1] https://www.lettingagenttoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2017/8/almost-81-000-build-to-rent-units-in-england-completed-or-planned

Monthly falls in average rents in PCL finishes

Published On: August 3, 2017 at 1:10 pm

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Property News

Typical rental values in the prime central London letting market were unchanged during July, ending a series of monthly falls that began in October 2015.

Figures from the Knight Frank central London lettings index also reveal that annual rental growth has risen slightly to -3.7%. This was the first time this year that it has gone below -4%.

What’s more, the decline of 0.4% in the three months to July was also the lowest three-month fall seen since October 2015.

Stock

In addition, the Index shows that rental values in the sector have slipped since the end of 2015 as a result of greater stock levels. This means that the market is turning slightly in favour of tenants.

Tom Bill, head of residential research at Knight Frank, observed: ‘More property came onto the lettings market as a result of uncertainty over the short term trajectory of price growth in the sales market following successive tax hikes. Tax changes affecting landlords appear to be one reason the market balance appears to be tipping back the other way.’[1]

Mr Bill went on to note that cuts on mortgage interest tax relief and the 3% stamp duty surcharge are just two of the reasons that some landlords are reassessing their portfolios. UK finance has also revised its predictions for buy-to-let lending in 2018 by 13%, from £33bn to £38bn.

Monthly falls in average rents in PCL finishes

Flat

‘Prices are likely to be flat this year after a 6.3% price decline in 2016 and transaction volumes are rising. Accordingly, there was a 6.4% decline in the number of new lettings properties on the market in prime central London in the first six months of 2017 compared to last year,’ Bill said. [1]

What’s more, the Index shows that demand indicators are increasing, which are again supporting rental values. The number of new tenancies agreed in the opening six months of the year was 28.2% greater than in 2016, with the number of new prospective tenants registering with the firm up by 14.7%.

The number of viewings was also up by 23.1%.

[1] http://www.propertywire.com/news/uk/monthly-decline-average-rents-prime-central-london-lettings-market-halts/

Rent Hikes have Hit a 14-Month High, Report Letting Agents

Published On: July 27, 2017 at 8:59 am

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Property News

Tags: letting agents,rent prices,rental market,tenants

Rent hikes across the UK hit a 14-month high in June, according to the latest Private Rented Sector Report from ARLA Propertymark (the Association of Residential Letting Agents).

Rent Hikes have Hit a 14-Month High, Report Letting Agents

Rent hikes

The number of member letting agents that saw landlords putting rent costs up for tenants rose to 31% in June – up from just 27% in May.

This is the highest level of agents reporting rent hikes since April 2016, when 31% saw increases.

Lettings law

Predominantly, letting agents would like the new Government to scrap the impending ban on letting agent fees (83%), while three quarters (73%) would also like the Government to focus on improving enforcement for rogue operators.

More than three in five (62%) want the new Government to regulate the sector, while a quarter (26%) think it should provide tax breaks to encourage longer-term tenancies.

Rental stock

The number of properties managed per letting agent branch increased marginally in June, to an average of 190 – up from 189 in May.

Year-on-year, this figure has risen by 8%. In June last year, letting agents managed just 176 properties on average.

Tenant demand

In June, demand from tenants dropped slightly, with an average of 61 new tenants registered per branch. In April and May, agents registered 65 on average.

The Chief Executive of ARLA Propertymark, David Cox, comments on the latest report: “With the cost of living on the rise and inflationary pressures tightening, the last thing tenants need is for their rents to continue rising. However, the fact that supply looks to be rising, while demand has dropped slightly, indicates a move in the right direction for the market.

“Ultimately, to stop rent prices from increasing too much, we need to find the balance between supply and demand. While there’s still a long way to go, if the supply of rental stock continues to increase and the number of tenants searching for new properties drops off, we’ll be making headway towards achieving this.”

Landlords and agents, have you witnessed rent hikes over the past month?

Catch up with what’s going on in the sales market with NAEA Propertymark’s latest report: /homebuyers-pushing-summer-transactions/

Developers call for professional approach to drive up BTL sector standards

Published On: July 20, 2017 at 8:54 am

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Landlord News

Tags: build to rent,Buy-to-Let,landlords,private rental sector,tenants

The most recent English Housing Survey published by The Department for Communities and Local Government has underlined the need for improved standards in the market.

More than one-quarter of homes in the private rented sector were found to have failed to meet the Government’s Decent Homes standards. This has led to calls for a more professional approach in order to improve conditions, from many developers of Build to Rent housing.

Substandard

28% of properties in the sector are currently considered to be in a substandard condition – taking into account electrical safety, disrepair, damp and other factors. However, there is a marked improvement from a decade ago, when this figure stood at 47%.

Worryingly, the survey revealed that nearly one in five of those living in the private rental sector lacked basic fire protection, such as smoke alarms. This is alarming considering that the number of private renters has nearly doubled during the last ten years.

In addition, the survey indicates that a number of people renting from a private landlord suffer from a lack of security. This is highlighted by the fact that nearly two-thirds of tenants evicted from their property were pushed out as their landlord wanted to use or sell the accommodation.

Security

As Jean Marc-Vandevivere, Chief Executive of PLATFORM, notes: ‘The issues across the private rented sector are often ones of security, from tenancy length to fire protection.’[1]

‘Those in the build to rent sector have a vested interest in keeping hold of their tenants and ensuring that the homes we provide are to the highest possible standard. The continual growth of the private rented sector demands a change in approach, we need to see a shift towards professionally managed homes that provide what renters are really looking for, a secure place to live and grow.’[1]

Developers call for professional approach to drive up BTL sector standards

Dissatisfaction

Johnny Caddick, managing director at Moda Living, observed that the results of the survey found that dissatisfaction rates of those living in the private rented sector was the greatest of any tenure group.

With over 20% of tenants unhappy with their accommodation, this is a greater rate than 10% for social housing a 1% of owner occupiers.

Mr Caddick said: ‘The many real concerns people have around renting are totally justified, but our aim is to address all of these with purpose-built developments that are managed 24/7 and which engender a real sense of community.’

‘We have a commercial imperative to do things properly, whereas traditional buy to let landlords have little incentive to maintain and upgrade knackered old properties. Renters in Britain deserve a better deal – as they receive in the U.S. and Europe.’[1]

[1] https://www.propertyinvestortoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2017/7/–professional-approach-needed-to-drive-up-standards-in-prs-claim-btl-developers

UK rents rose by 1.8% in year to June, says ONS

Published On: July 19, 2017 at 9:47 am

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Property News

Tags: landlords,rents,tenants,UK rents

Rental prices paid by private tenants in the UK increased by 1.8% in the year to June 2017, according to the most recent figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

This was the third consecutive month that rents increased by this figure, led by growth in England, where rental prices increased by 1.9%. Wales saw growth of 1.1% and Scotland saw rises of 0.2% over the same period.

Increases

Between January 2011 and June 2017, private rental prices in the UK increased by 14.8%, driven by price increases in London. However, when the capital is excluded from the data, rental prices actually rose by 10.8% over the year.

Despite historical growth in prices within London, private rental prices here rose by 1.3% in the year to June 2017. This was 0.5% less than the national 12-month rate of growth.

UK rents rose by 1.8% in year to June, says ONS

Pressure

John Goodall, CEO and co-founder of buy-to-let specialist lender Landbay, stated: ‘While the pace of house price growth may have slowed, house prices still continue to rise, ultimately meaning that fewer people can afford to buy, which can only place greater pressure on the UK’s rental sector. For that reason it’s essential that new construction is planned across all tenures, so that rents don’t escalate to the point where they’re inhibiting aspiring homeowners’ ability to save for a deposit.’[1]

‘Quite simply, we need to build more purpose built rental homes to support those hoping to take their first steps onto the property ladder,’ Goodall went on to observe.[1]

[1] https://www.landlordtoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2017/7/uk-rents-increase-by-1-8-says-ons

Supply of rental stock rises – as do rents

Published On: July 7, 2017 at 10:59 am

Author: Em Morley

Categories: Property News

Tags: landlords,properties,rents,supply,tenants,UK rental market

New research from online property portal Rightmove suggests that there are more properties available on the market in the UK rental sector. However, rents are continuing to increase.

Figures from the report suggest that supply outside of London rose by 7% during the second quarter of 2017, in comparison to the same period last year. In the capital supply actually increased by 8%.

Rental Rises

Despite the increased choice for would-be tenants, asking rents are continuing to increase – rising by 2.8% outside of London in comparison to the opening quarter of the year. Now, rents amount to £790 per month on average.

Inside of London, asking rents fell by 0.2% quarter-on-quarter, averaging at £1,934 per month. Rental prices here are now 3.2% lower than the peak of £2,020 per month at the same period on 2016.

Choices

Rightmove’s data suggests that regions such as Ascot, Bath, Leeds and Birmingham offer some of the largest concentrations of available properties for tenants in Britain.

These findings were based upon regions with the highest number of available rental properties, as a proportion of total housing stock in these regions.

The figures can be seen in the table below:

Rightmove

Best choice for renters by region (source: Rightmove)

An increase in choice has come as a slight surprise, given the recent tax changes set at deterring landlords from the sector.

Supply of rental stock rises – as do rents

Investment

Sam Mitchell, Head of Lettings at Rightmove, observed: ‘Many thought that rental supply would constrict this year, as landlords sold up and looked to invest their money elsewhere, but clearly this isn’t happening yet. Perhaps landlords are re-mortgaging their buy to let properties instead, as they still feel it’s a better investment than looking to other industries.’[1]

‘It could spell good news for tenants coming to the end of their lease as they might find there is slightly more choice than last year. Anyone hoping for a drop in prices due to the extra choice will be disappointed though as rents are following a very similar trend to previous years,’ she concluded.[1]

[1] http://www.propertywire.com/news/uk/supply-rental-properties-rises-uk-rents-still-going/