Voids plummet - key sign of healthy rental market, new survey shows

Currently, the average void period across England is 16.8 days a year. With an average monthly rent of £940, equating to £31 per day, this means that void periods are currently costing landlords £518 per year. 

On a regional level, the longest average void period is in the West Midlands where, so far in 2022, properties are empty for an average of 19.8 days of the year at a cost of £528. 

In the East Midlands, the average void period is 18.3 at a cost of £457, followed by the North West where 17.4 void days come at a cost of £501 for landlords. 

Despite these significant void periods, the national overall void period for 2022 is actually 2.6 days less than it was in 2021, bringing the cost to landlords down by 7.4 per cent.  

Total Landlord Insurance, which commissioned the research, claims this is a really strong indication that the rental market is returning to full strength after 2021’s market continued to struggle with the hangover effects of the pandemic and eviction bans. 

While 2022’s national drop in void periods is significant, there have been some even bigger declines on a regional level. 

The biggest of which has been reported in the North West where today’s average void period of 17.4 days is 4.9 days fewer than it was in 2021. This has led to a 15.2per cent reduction in void costs for landlords. 

In London, void periods are 4.6 days shorter this year than last which means void costs have fallen by 18.5 per cent - the biggest cost reduction of all regions - while the East Midlands has seen voids drop by 3.4, thus reducing landlord costs by 10.9 per cent.

Total landlord Insurance associate director Steve Barnes says: “The viability of buy to let property as an investment relies heavily on void periods being kept to an absolute minimum. Under normal circumstances, this can be done by ensuring a top tenant experience and utilising astute property management. The pandemic, however, was anything but normal which meant that 2020 and 2021 were some of the most void-heavy years in recent memory.“