Demand for rental homes significantly exceeded supply in June, with an average of nine prospective tenants competing for each available property, Propertymark data shows. The average number of new prospective tenants registering at member branches saw a slight dip to 96 during the month, while available stock also decreased to 11.25 properties per branch.
New fully managed instructions remained largely stable at an average of 3.02 per branch. The number of new tenancies agreed fell slightly from the previous month to 8.15.
Propertymark's Housing Insight report indicated that rents remained broadly static for most agents, with 63% reporting no overall change in June. However, separate ONS figures included in the report showed average UK rents were 3.3% higher than a year earlier and 0.3% above May levels. Average monthly rents were £1,442 in England, £1,012 in Scotland, and £843 in Wales.
The average void period for rental properties increased to just over three weeks in June. The level of rental arrears reported by member agents also edged up to 2.3%.