Supply surge - new listings soar following market relaunch

The number of new rental listings reaching the market has soared as much as 44 per cent in some areas following the ‘un-freezing’ of lettings activities by the government.

It’s now a week since agents were allowed to return to work with socially-distanced physical viewings, and research by lettings platform Howsy suggests the news was greeted with a big rise in stock availability.

The platform analysed the number of available rental properties listed across the major portals the day after lockdown restrictions were eased across the UK property market, and compared this to the number of properties listed in April.

The figures show that across 23 major UK cities, the number of rental properties now available to UK tenants has seen an immediate uplift of five per cent on average. 

However, this increase was driven primarily by seven cities.

The largest increase based on the sheer number of properties has been in London, with an additional 6,838 immediately hitting the portals, an increase of 15 per cent.

In terms of percentage increases, Edinburgh has seen the largest influx with an uplift of 44 per cent.

Cambridge has seen rental stock bolstered by 19 per cent with Aberdeen up 16 per cent. 

Glasgow, Oxford and Manchester have also seen a lift in rental stock levels, albeit to smaller degrees.

“Many in the rental sector will be breathing a sigh of relief with such immediate green shoots of market activity returning to a number of cities following an ease in lockdown market restrictions. Other pockets of the market will take longer to see this positive trend emerge as agents and landlords find their feet operationally” explains Howsy founder and chief executive Callum Brannan.

“Now it’s vital that landlords receive the support and protection they need from us as an industry, to ensure confidence in their investment and to maintain a suitable level of rental stock to meet demand from tenants who rely on these homes in order to live” he continues.