Posts with tag: renters

How do rental costs vary between North East metro stations?

Published On: May 19, 2016 at 1:45 pm

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Interesting analysis into the private rental sector has looked at how rents vary between North East metro stations.

Research conducted by property firm KIS reveals that rents can alter by an average of £66 from station to station. Choosing the correct location could save as much as £500 per month in rent!

Fees

Data from the investigation shows that the average cost of renting a home on the Metro Map is £560. However, there is a £545 difference between the £938 a month paid to rent in Haymarket and Monument and the £393 paid in Jarrow.

At £808, Jesmond is the most expensive place outside of central Newcastle in which to rent. This is followed by West Jesmond (£726) and Tynemouth and Gateshead (£723).

On the flip side, Jarrow (£393) is the cheapest place in the region to rent, followed by Tyne Dock (£399), Wallsend (£412) and Hadrian Road (£413).

The map also reveals the average cost of renting a two-bedroom property within a quarter of a mile of all of the Metro’s 60 stations. This shows where Tyne and Wear renters can potentially locate a bargain.

Highs and lows

Excluding central Newcastle, the top five most expensive places to rent in Tyne and Wear per calendar month are:

  • Jesmond-£808
  • West Jesmond-£726
  • Tynemouth/Gateshead-£723
  • Whitley Bay-£673
  • Cullercoats-£660

The five cheapest areas to rent are:

  • Jarrow-£393
  • Tyne Dock-£399
  • Hadrian Road-£413
  • Chichester/Byker-£423
  • Meadow Well-£425
How do rental costs vary between North East metro stations?

How do rental costs vary between North East metro stations?

Between stations, the largest differences were found to be:

  • Manors to Byker-£477
  • North Shields to Whitley Bay-£235
  • Gateshead to Central-£212
  • Gateshead to Gateshead Stadium-£148
  • Haymarket to Jesmond-£130

Location

Managing Director of KIS, Ajay Jagota, commented, ‘location, location, location is one of the classic golden rules of property, but month after month I’m stuck struck by the fact that people are prepared to pay as much as £5724 a year to live in a particular area. To put that into context Metro journey of three or four minutes-or even a bike ride of a little more than five-from Gateshead to Gateshead stadium is worth almost £2,000 a year in rent.’[1]

‘It’s not just the rents that cost, it’s deposits too,’ Jagota considered. ‘If you want and can live in the heart of Newcastle, you’re not just going to have to find the best part of £1000 every month in rent, the chance you’ll need to find £1407 just to move in.’[1]

‘Research this week suggests there are only five places in the UK were renting is cheaper than buying and none of those are anywhere near the North East. One of the major stumbling blocks to buying a home is all-too often the difficulty buyers have in saving up a deposit, and extra costs like deposits can really make a difference to people’s ability to save,’ Jagota concluded.[1]

[1] http://www.propertyreporter.co.uk/landlords/choosing-the-right-metro-stop-could-save-500-per-month-in-rent.html

Less single renters taking on new tenancies

Published On: March 15, 2016 at 10:47 am

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The latest HomeLet Rental Index indicates that new tenancies taken on by single renters dropped over the last year. Instead, there has been a rise in families and people sharing rental accommodation.

Single slide

In the last year, tenants living in privately rented accommodation alone made up 33% of new tenancies, down from the 67% recorded in 2008. However, the number of new tenancies signed by two tenants rose from 28% to 52% over the same timeframe.

What’s more, HomeLet’s figures show that the number of new tenancies agreed by three or more tenants increased from 5% to 15% between 2008 and 2015.

HomeLet suggests that its figures could well reflect the trend of more families entering the private rental sector, with high house prices preventing them from getting a foot on the property ladder.

Family ties

More recently released data, from the English Housing Survey, shows that number of privately rented properties let to renters with dependent children increased from 30% to 37% in the last decade.

In addition, the Index shows that the typical rental agreement signed for properties signed in Britain outside of London was 4.8% greater in the three months to February 2016 in comparison to the same time last year.

This however does represent a fall in comparison to last month’s Index, which reported that typical rents in the three months to January was 5.5% greater than in 2015.

According to the data, HomeLet reports the average rent in Britain-with the exception of the UK, is now £744 per month. In the capital, the average monthly rent stands at £1,521.

Less single renters taking on new tenancies

Less single renters taking on new tenancies

Quicker than inflation

Martin Totty, chief executive of Barbon Insurance Group, parent company of HomeLet, said, ‘average rents are still rising and while we are not seeing the double-digit increases recorded in some areas of the country during the summer of last year, the cost of a new tenancy continues to rise more quickly than general inflation.’[1]

‘Landlords are letting out homes to many more families, with rental property representing an increasingly important alternative to owner occupation; we’re also seeing people manage with higher rents by meeting the costs as joint tenants,’ Totty added. [1]

[1] https://www.lettingagenttoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2016/3/number-of-single-tenants-falling-as-families-and-sharers-enter-prs

Tenants staying in PRS for longer

Published On: February 22, 2016 at 11:33 am

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Latest government figures suggest that private rental sector tenancies are getting longer.

Additionally, data from the report shows that the typical length of residence in a family-sized rental unit is increasing.

Rises

The English Housing Survey 2014/15 shows that in the last 10 years, the proportion of privately rented homes with dependent children has risen from 30% in 2004-05, to 37% in 2014/15.

In addition, the average length of private sector residencies rose to 4 years, from 3.5 one year ago. The survey also found that tenants living in privately rented accommodation for a greater length of time generally paid less.

Tenants staying in PRS for longer

Tenants staying in PRS for longer

Break down barriers

As a result, the RLA has called on the Government to break down barriers that prevent longer-term tenancies. These include restrictions imposed on landlords by lenders

RLA chairman Alan Ward, believes, ‘more can be done to help landlords offer longer term tenancies without the need for compulsory three or five tenancies. We are calling on the Government to use the Housing and Planning Bill to remove barriers preventing landlords from offering longer tenancies, including mortgage and leasehold conditions that may prevent this.’[1]

‘Notable increases in the average length of time tenants stay in a private rented property show the system already enables longer tenancies that so many are calling for. Landlords are already meeting tenants’ requirements and there is no need for heavy-handed legislation that would disrupt supply of badly-needed accommodation,’ Ward went on to say.[1]

 

[1] https://www.lettingagenttoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2016/2/private-rental-sector-tenancies-for-families-are-getting-longer

 

Buyers 10% better off than renters

Published On: February 22, 2016 at 10:06 am

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New research from Lloyds Bank indicates that those getting a foot on the property ladder are better off than those renting.

According to the data, first-time buyers are £865 per year more wealthy than tenants in the rental market.

Costly

The average monthly buying fees, inclusive of mortgage payments, attributed to first-time buyers purchasing a three-bedroom property stood at £672 in December 2015. This was £72 lower than the average monthly rent of £744 paid by renters in the same type of property.

This shows an increase of £105 over the course of the last year. Average monthly rents have risen more sharply, showing a 3% increase, in comparison to a 2% rise in monthly buying costs.

At present, the financial gap between buying and renting (£865) is more than double the saving of £397 recorded in 2010. In this period, average rents have gone up by 23% (£139) per month from £605 and buying costs have risen by 17% (£100 per month) from £572,

Since 2009, buying has been the cheaper option.

Regional variations

Average monthly buying costs in the South East (£965) are £65 greater than the average rental costs in the UK. This is the only region in Britain where renting is the more cost effective option.

Alternatively, buying is more affordable than renting in monetary terms in the North West, where the average first-time buyer pays £133 per month less than the average renter. This was followed by Scotland, where owner-occupiers pay £120 less and Wales, where buyers enjoy savings of £103.

Buyers 10% better off than renters

Buyers 10% better off than renters

First-timers

First-time buyer numbers hit 310,000 in 2015, slightly down from the 311,700 recorded in 2014. However, this is a rise of 60% since first-time buyer totals fell to a low of 193,700 in 2011.

The number of first-time buyers made up 46% of house purchase made with a mortgage during 2015. This was up from 36% at the beginning of the downturn in 2007.

Mike Songer, Mortgage Director at Lloyds Bank, observed, ‘we’ve seen a significant shift over the past five year, with people consistently paying less on average per month when owning their property as opposed to renting. In 2015 this gap widened by over £100 to an annual saving of £865.’[1]

‘This has been helped by record low mortgage rates and rising private rents, making owning a home a much more attractive proposition than renting. This steady improvement in the costs of buying compared to renting has helped to boost the number of first-time buyers over the past few years, who now account for 46% of all home sales in 2015-up from 36% in 2006. Official government schemes, such as Help to Buy have also played a part in helping first-time buyers as have improving economic conditions,’ Songer added.[1]

[1]  http://www.propertyreporter.co.uk/finance/buying-10-better-off-than-renters-says-lloyds.html

Renters warned not to leave personal documents behind

Published On: February 10, 2016 at 12:47 pm

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The National Landlords Association has joined forces with the Royal Mail to warn tenants across the country to update their address details or take out a redirection service when they move on from a property.

This is to prevent identity theft and financial fraud, with a new survey showing that mail and other personal documents are the sixth most common item left behind by outgoing renters.

Information

In a survey of 1,364 landlords 8% said that they have found or received personal information, including bankslips, payslips, utility and passports after a tenant has vacated their property.

5% said they had to report an item they had found in a home to the police.

Richard Lambert, CEO of the National Landlords Association observed, ‘with a quarter of tenants moving on from a property after just a year, it is no surprise that many forget to inform their bank or building society of their new address.’[1]

‘Recent ONS figures show that application fraud cases-when fraudsters open an account using fake or stolen documents in someone else’s name-rose by 14% last year. This means that renters who don’t update their address details or take out a Redirection service to their new home are putting themselves at risk of identity theft leading to financial fraud,’ he continued.[1]

Renters warned not to leave personal documents behind

Renters warned not to leave personal documents behind

Left behind

Clothes were found to be the top thing that renters leave behind at the end of tenancy agreement, closely followed by toys and, unbelievably, animals! Landlords have reported finding ferrets, snakes and live pet sea monkeys!

The top ten items most commonly left behind by a tenant were found to be:

  1. Clothes (14%)
  2. Toys (14%)
  3. Animals (11%)
  4. Exercise equipment (10%)
  5. Furniture/bedding (10%)
  6. Mail and important personal documents (8%)
  7. Electrical items including kettles, fridges and TVs (7%)
  8. Food (7%)
  9. Cars and car parts (6%)
  10. Gardening/plants/tools (6%)

Other surprising items found left behind were the ashes of a dead relative, 14 car tyres, 20 bikes, four sunbeds, a drum kit and a prosthetic leg!

Jim Conning, Managing Director of Data Services at the Royal Mail said, ‘it is interesting-and worrying-to see the range of items that tenants leave behind when moving on from a property. We would always advise renters to not only think about the items they can see when they are moving but also the external services that are linked to the property in their name.’[1]

[1] http://www.royalmailgroup.com/fraud-warning-renters-mail-revealed-one-most-common-items-left-behind-move

 

Renters prefer shorter tenancies

Published On: December 8, 2015 at 10:54 am

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A new investigation has indicated that a growing number of renters now prefer shorter tenancies.

Data from a report conducted by Knight Frank shows that 53% of tenants favour either a six month or one year agreement.

Flexible

The results from the firm’s PRS research shows that rented accommodation as a whole is now becoming a flexible form of tenure, particularly amongst younger workers. 69% of tenants between 18-24 said that they preferred agreements for either six months or a year. 61% of 25-34 year olds said that they also preferred this timeframe for tenancies.

By nature, the rental market allows a lot of freedom and therefore a lot of movement. This mobility is underlined by reasons why people move property, with 30% of tenants who have lived in at least one rented home identifying a desire to upgrade as their motive.

52% of tenants said that living close to their place of work was a key priority.38% of those questioned have lived in five or more rental properties. 23% of these had moved less than a mile from their previous property, with 19% moving more than 60 miles for study or work purposes.

28% said that they would be happy to pay up to 30% of their total gross income on rent. In the capital, 31% of under-25s said that they were prepared to pay 50% of their income on rent.

Almost one-quarter of those in the private rented sector said that they live alone, with 34% living in a home as a couple but with no children. 43% of 18-24 year olds said that they were currently sharing rental accommodation with a friend.

Renters prefer shorter tenancies

Renters prefer shorter tenancies

Priorities

‘The Tenant Survey shows us that priorities for tenants when choosing a property include proximity to their place of work or study, how easily they can reach transport links and how affordable the property is,’ said Grainne Gilmore, Head of UK Residential Research. ‘Tenants are mobile, owing to the flexibility offered by renting as a tenure and while the motivations for moving vary, the largest cohort of respondees identified the wish to upgrade to a bigger or nicer property as their key motivation for moving into their current rented property.’[1]

Tim Hyatt, Head of Lettings at Knight Frank, noted that,’ the face of the Private Rented Sector is changing rapidly amid increasing large-scale investment. Already a dominant form of tenure in the UK, it is also becoming an established asset class and we believe that Knight Frank’s market-leading Tenant Survey provides key insights into the market, addressing the fundamental questions for investors seeking to bring to market a Build-To-Rent development which perfectly meets tenant requirements.’[1]

[1] http://www.propertyreporter.co.uk/landlords/renters-opting-for-shorter-tenancies.html