There was good news for Liverpool landlords this week as property portal Zoopla announced that rents in Liverpool are 6.1% higher than they were last year. And renters need not worry as the average rent is £650PCM, making it one of the most affordable places to rent in the UK.
The rental growth Liverpool has seen over the past year is 1.5% higher than the UK average of 4.6%. This is a 14 year high and it highlights how strong the rental market is in the area. The demand for rentals remained constant throughout the pandemic and then as soon as the restrictions were lifted there was a surge in demand. This has led to properties in Liverpool being rented faster than any other city in the UK. According to Zoopla, the average time to rent a property in Liverpool is just 8 weeks compared to a UK average of 15, but letting agents in the city would say even this figure is too high. Here at LPS Real Estate we are finding that as long as a property is vacant and in decent condition it will rent within a couple of weeks. In some cases, we are renting properties on the same day they were listed.
So, why is Liverpool’s letting market experiencing such a strong growth? We spoke to LPS Director Joe Gervin to get his opinion.
Joe said: “Liverpool always has a strong rental market which is largely driven by students and young professionals who aren’t looking to commit to a mortgage. We have definitely however seen a surge in demand over the past few months which is likely the result of a build-up from the lack of movement during lockdown. The problem is that whilst we are seeing this surge in demand, we are also experiencing a shortage in the number of rental properties becoming available. This means as soon as a property is listed it is receiving a huge number of enquiries.
“On average, I would say we are receiving over 200 enquiries per property per week which is more than double the numbers we would normally expect. Dealing with enquiries has literally become a full-time job. We are also arranging more viewings and then an average of 12 people will apply for each property but only one person can be successful. A lot of people are frustrated because they cannot find a property, but we will continue to do everything we can to find people a home.
“Q3 has always been a busy time for the lettings market, but it has been a while since it was this busy. We would normally expect to see things slowing down in the final quarter, but with demand remaining high and stock remaining low, I’m not convinced this will be the case this year. We should celebrate the fact that our lettings market is thriving and that so many people want to live in our fantastic city.”
Based on all this information, we spoke to Andy from our lettings team to get a bit of advice for landlords and tenants.
LANDLORDS
With demand so high, now could be a good time to purchase a new investment or even to get started in the property world. Our team are on hand to give any advice you may require and we have a few properties below that would make an ideal investment. You can also view all our PROPERTIES FOR SALE HERE.
.jpg)
Liverpool is a fantastic city and it is a much more affordable place to rent compared to other cities. It attracts a people from all walks of life, from students to young professionals and families. The demand here is huge at the moment though, so you need to be on the ball if you want to grab yourself a property. We would recommend you register to receive property alerts from agencies and the property portals so you are the first to hear when a property matching your criteria comes available. If you do see something you like you need to act quick and be flexible with viewing times; you may even need to book some time off work.
CLICK HERE TO RECEIVE OUR ALERTS | CLICK TO VIEW OUR RENTAL PROPERTIES
