Property management services should prepare for longer stay tenants
Posted by Lucy Wooldridge
The length of time tenants stay in the same property is increasing, with residential lettings agents likely to notice the change, according to the Tenancy Deposit Scheme.
Malcolm Harrison, a spokesperson for the Tenancy Deposit Scheme, highlighted the notable rise in the number of tenants renting properties for over the traditional tenancy length.
The Dispute Service currently operates the Tenancy Deposit Scheme which works in accordance with the requirements of the Housing Act 2004 and provides a dispute resolution service at the conclusion of a standard tenancy.
Mr Harrison believes that if you go back five years, many surveys would have indicated that the average tenancy was around 14 to 15 months in length.
However, this has quickly changed, with the expert anticipating that this average length has risen substantially since then.
According to Mr Harrison, a high proportion of tenants are renting the same single property for two years or longer amid concerns over the economy.
"People don't know what is happening [with the economy] - we are in a recessionary climate," he said.
"They may be in work and everything is going well with their jobs, but they are nervous so they are not going to make any major moves."
The news is likely to make interesting reading to residential lettings agents who may see a reduction in the amount of people seeking tenancies, with overall market activity reducing.
However, the projected rise in rent prices could provide landlords engaged in UK property investment with an easy increase on returns.
According to the latest figures produced by Halifax earlier this month (February 4th), the cost of renting is expected to continue to rise in the coming year.
Statistics produced by the firm indicate that 61 per cent of Britons predict that the cost of renting in the private sector is set to rise in the next year compared with just three per cent anticipating a fall.
With more tenants staying property despite rental increases, residential letting agents may yet benefit from the relative lack of activity.
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