Prime London lettings market in good shape thanks to supply dip

Prime London’s lettings market is growing but has seen fewer new lets over the second quarter of the year according to data from agents’ subscription service LonRes. 

LonRes splits prime London into three areas and it shows that in the second quarter of 2019 there’s a 2.3 per cent rise in achieved rents in ‘prime central’, a 1.4 per cent increase in ‘prime fringe’ and a 0.9 per cent fall in ‘prime London’ - all compared with Q2 2018.

Some 34 per cent of properties let in Q2 2019 had a price reduction before securing a tenant. This compares to 39 per cent in Q2 2018 and 47 per cent in Q2 2017.

In PCL the average rental value in Q2 2019 stood at £50 per square foot. 

Looking ahead 50 per cent of respondents to the LonRes Agent Survey expected rents to rise over the coming 12 months. Another 35 per cent thought rental values would stay the same and 15 per cent expect them to fall.

LonRes says demand from prospective tenants is rising: 47 per cent of respondents to the agent survey reported an increase in applicants registering in Q2 2019 while just 13 per cent saw a fall, compared with Q1 2019.

Properties priced at £1,000 per week or below were most in demand while agents reported less interest for homes priced at £3,000 per week or more. 

Stock remains scarce. In Q2 2019 new instructions across the three LonRes prime areas fell 4.3 per cent compared to Q2 2018.