The return of the London renters as demand for property soars

As students and employees return to the capital, London’s rental demand soars and reaches a record high

There is a huge spike in demand for London rentals. With offices opening up and face-to-face teaching back in colleges and universities, the demand for London rental properties has increased by almost 60% in the third quarter compared to the same period last year.

According to a study done by the lettings company, The Vesper Group, the return of office employees and students are the reason behind the rise, which has, in turn, led to a shortage of available properties.

Gathering data based on the number of enquiries received for its individual rental properties, The Vesper Group says, an average London rental property is now on the market for less than a week, compared to almost a month in 2020.

This surge in interest has resulted in a price hike across all parts of the capital, with the cost of renting up by 10% in the same period – although this is still down on the 2019 average.

James Cameron, Vesper Group director, said: “London life is rapidly resuming, with the race to find a rental property in the capital now as competitive as it’s ever been. Employees heading back to their London-based jobs, combined with a typically buoyant student market, has resulted in our current enquiry levels topping those for 2019.

In fact, the rental market is now even busier than the sales market, which was unthinkable just a few months ago. With demand outstripping supply, rents are increasing and – if the limited availability of properties continues – it won’t be long before they surpass 2019 levels.

We’re now seeing greater urgency and flexibility from tenants, who are having to compromise as well as be more decisive to secure a property within their budget. Traditionally we now enter a quieter time of the year for rental properties, but at present, we don’t see the market slowing.”

Miles Robinson, Head of Mortgages at online mortgage broker Trussle, credits opening up of bars, restaurants and other venues in the capital and life returning to normal as the push behind the rental surge. He said: “Working from home became the norm during the height of the pandemic, and many amenities were forced to shut, so we saw a steep increase in people searching for properties in rural locations.

However, since restaurants, bars and venues reopened, the appeal of city life has returned. Alongside this, hybrid working is fast becoming the norm and people are anticipating being in the office 2-3 days per week, meaning proximity to work is again a consideration when searching for a property.”

The London areas that are currently most popular with the renters are Battersea, Canary Wharf, Clapham and South Kensington.

As per the Office of National Statistics, the number of households renting privately in the UK also grew massively – 4.4 million in 2019-20, with London having a fair chunk of the rental pie.

Ashley San Pedro, Sales Director, Quintain Living, said: “There is certainly a huge demand for our homes to rent here at Wembley Park. The last quarter has been our most successful to date with over 150% more leases signed in September alone than any of our previous top-performing months, pre or post-Covid. In terms of what kind of homes renters are looking for, we have seen a marked increase in demand for two-bedroom furnished apartments.”

Are you affected by this recent surge in the price of London rentals? Tell us in the comments below.