There’s been an upbeat prediction on the lettings market given by leading market commentator Lucian Cook, head of residential research at high-end agency Savills.
In his firm’s forecast for the housing market for the next five years, Cook says rents will continue to rise with an average 15.4 per cent increase UK-wide by the end of 2024.
London will perform slightly better – up 18.8 per cent in the same period – but will see a relatively muted 2020 which, in isolation, will see rents in the capital increase just 2.0 per cent.
“Pressure on private landlords will limit the supply of rental properties(especially in the higher-value, lower-yielding markets). But the proportion of household income that tenants can afford to pay as rent will be the overriding constraint on rental growth” explains Cook.
“The fundamentals supporting rental growth, incomes and employment, are strongest in London. While a glut of buy to let supply in 2016 has suppressed growth recently, we predict a return to London outperforming as tax changes push landlords out of the sector.”
