End of ‘Covid Tenancies’ Boosts Number of Available Rental Properties

There are more rental properties for tenants to choose from than any other time since Covid, with 45% more properties available to rent compared to last year. Research indicates that much of this is due to a large number of three-year tenancies agreed by tenants at lower-than-average rates during the pandemic coming to an end.

Head of Lettings at Chestertons, Adam Jennings, explains: “At the height of the pandemic, rents dropped considerably and gave tenants the opportunity to secure a property that they might not have previously been able to afford. To give both, the tenant and landlord, a greater degree of security during those unsettling months, many of the tenancies agreed were for up to three years.

These contracts are now coming to an end and many of the properties are now coming back onto the market, giving tenants looking to move a greater choice.”

Tenants appear to be making the most of these market conditions, and Chestertons’ data showed a 12% increase in rental enquiries, and 54% more viewings being arranged compared to December 2022.

With a larger pool of properties from which tenants can choose from, landlords are having to be more flexible with their rents, and in December, Chestertons saw 46% more of its landlords agreeing to a rent reduction compared to December 2022. “Although tenants are enjoying more choice right now, we advise them to start their search as early as possible as London’s rental market remains extremely competitive”, Jennings adds.

Chestertons is forecasting a 5% increase in rents across the UK and London in 2024, followed by 3-3.5% in 2025 as the accumulation of new supply begins to soak up demand.