Rental market is badly out of balance warns agents’ leader

The number of new prospective tenants registering per Propertymark member branch held at 91 in February - very close to last spring’s average of 94. 

This latest data from the agents’ trade body shows that the number of properties available to rent per member branch remains steady at nine. This translates into an average of 10 prospective tenants registering per available property last month.

Some 50 per cent of responding agents reported rents increasing month-on-month on average at their branch in February.

Nathan Emerson, Propertymark chief executive, comments: “The lettings market remains very much out of balance however, with an average of ten registered applicants per property. As demand continues to outweigh supply, pressure on rents has eased slightly since the peaks of last summer but it has by no means gone away.” 

Meanwhile on the sales side Propertymark says the average number of new prospective buyers registered per member branch rose from 70 in January to 94 in February. The continued rise in demand since December is a regular seasonal trend and suggests buyers have not been put off looking for a new home by rising interest rates. 

The average number of viewings per property remained steady in February compared, and up since December. The average last month was 3.0 compared to a December low of 1.8. 

And the supply of new homes up for sale per member branch returned to the steady state of 10 per branch in February. 

At the same time, the average number of sales agreed per member branch rose to eight in February, which is the same level as February 2022. Total stock of properties available per member branch continued to inch up in February and now stands at 32 on average per member branch. 

Total properties for sale have been rising steadily over the last year. 

Emerson continues: “There has been a lot of doomy whispers about the housing market since last Autumn, but the activity being seen by Propertymark agents paints a robust picture. 

“Transaction levels year on year have been stable and listings of new properties coming to the market have also been steady. 

“Any indicators of something negative on the horizon would see these figures dropping below previous years. Prices have been affected by rising interest rates, but sellers are still keen to keep moving, and whilst interest rates are expected to rise again, they are not expected to climb excessively higher before reaching a level footing.”