Buy to Let
Tenant demand continues to rise
There’s no shortage of prospective tenants who are priced out of homebuying
Demand for properties to rent rose in the first quarter of 2016, according to a survey by BDRC Continental on behalf of Paragon Mortgages.
It said that the number of landlords reporting tenant demand as either increasing slightly or significantly stood at 39%, up from 34% in Q4 2015. A further 36% of landlords described tenant demand as being ‘stable’.
The sector is also witnessing high levels of tenant satisfaction. Nearly eight out of 10 (79%) tenants surveyed said they are satisfied with their current landlord, and 85% of tenants consider their current rental property to be their ‘home’. Nearly seven out of 10 believe the level of rent they pay to be ‘good’ or ‘very good’ value for money.
Long-term lets
The average length of time tenants are spending in their current properties now stands at nearly seven years, and the average length of time spent in the private rented sector (PRS) in total was nearly 13 years.
John Heron, director of mortgages at Paragon, said: “It’s good to see tenant satisfaction at such high levels. The sector often suffers from negative PR and the good work done by the vast majority of landlords to provide homes for those who cannot or do not want to buy goes unremarked. This survey clearly demonstrates that responsible and professional landlords are supporting the provision of housing to those that rely on the PRS for their home.”