Rental moves to drop 25 per cent in 2020 due to coronavirus lockdown
Rental moves are set to fall by a quarter this year due to the impact of the coronavirus lockdown, according to the latest research.
There are around 1.2m moves each year in the UK lettings market, but the number is expected to plummet 25 per cent in 2020 compared to last year.
However, demand for rented properties has bounced back 30 per cent in the two weeks to 14 April, after falling 57 per cent in the fortnight to 30 March.
Property platform Zoopla forecast that activity levels will rise to match previous years’ levels in the third and fourth quarters, which are typically busier seasonal periods for rental moves.
Rental growth is expected to slow in 2020, but to remain in positive territory. Year-on-year average UK rental growth in March was 2.4 per cent, compared to the 2.5 per cent annual jump recorded in February.
In London, rental growth was 1.7 per cent, down from 2.3 per cent the previous month.
“The flexibility of the rental market is one of the key factors which has allowed activity to bounce back more quickly than other parts of the property market,” said Grainne Gilmore, head of research at Zoopla.
“The rise in demand in the first two weeks in April indicates that some tenants are already mapping out their next move.
“As with the whole housing market however, activity levels and rental growth will likely be closely aligned to the economic landscape of the UK once the lockdown eases and the immediate impact of Covid-19 starts to recede.”
She added: “If the responses to Covid-19 contribute to a rise in unemployment, as some official bodies have forecast, this will reduce the scope for any additional growth in rents. We expect growth to moderate this year, but to remain in positive territory.”