Scottish letting agents give us their views on their local market.
“After difficult first 2 quarters of this year, the Aberdeen leasing market has improved during the summer months, with the city centre recording increased number of enquiries and viewings. These two factors had an immediate effect on number of lets secured. With a varied portfolio of properties on our books, we managed to attract all types of tenants. However, one bedroom properties generated most interest which has been confirmed by the latest Citylets report. We have also noted slightly increased interest in our higher end properties from private tenants and relocation agents. However, rental values remain low. Rents in Aberdeen remain below the national average and properties are taking an average of 50 days to let.”
“Q3 has undoubtedly been our busiest quarter, with most of our properties reserved at the first viewing and receiving several notes of interest from applicants. One and two bedroom flats in the West End tend to dominate the market with prices increasing. We’ve even seen some one bedroom flats achieve £1000pcm. The demand for property is far outweighing the supply, with landlords being able to reap the benefits. Areas such as the City Centre and Southside are also performing well with increased rents and interest levels.”
“Q3 has been an extremely busy period at The Flat Company, with the colourful and challenging requirements of the Edinburgh Festival being followed by a hectic period ensuring that properties are shipshape for student tenants returning from the summer. Our ability to offer clients a combination of short and long term lets is of increasing importance and has provided very good returns. For our professional lets demand continues to be very strong and thankfully the Edinburgh market appears to have absorbed the new PRT with only minor adverse issues.”
“Demand levels for good quality residential stock in Edinburgh remain high and continue to grow. Competition for rental property in the city is increasing as the continued rise in the short term let market and some landlords exiting the PRS constrain stock and availability. Interest from overseas investors has grown especially in the 1-2 bed markets and there is still strong demand for HMO’s. The impact of the PRT seems to have been minimal and the PRS continues to operate as normal. In general we feel the PRS is robust and even with the headwinds of political and economic uncertainty should remain buoyant going forward with opportunities for investors.”
“2018 continues to be profitable for landlords, with reduced void times and time to lets – signals of a strong market leading into 2019. Glasgow, in particular, has outperformed most other areas of Scotland (and England for that matter), with recent rent growth heading towards double digits in some cases. Investor sentiment is also strong with some interesting variables such as returns for furnished property. Student accommodation is proving to be a great asset all round with Glasgow now in the top three cities in the UK for investor returns.”
“We’ve got through another September (traditionally our busiest month of the year) and our student tenants are now settling in for the year. It will be fascinating to watch how these tenancies play out and to see when students exercise their rights to vacate next summer, or before, under the new PRT regime. Rents continue to climb across the board and over the past 2 months we’ve seen 25% of our properties letting at a higher rent than we advertise; with these properties achieving an average of 5% over the asking rent. With the threat of tighter regulations around the holiday letting market and a saturation of property numbers on portals like Airbnb, many holiday let landlords are turning their backs on holiday letting and moving across to a more stable long-term letting option to provide some much needed supply to the long-term letting market.”
“This past quarter has seen another busy period in relation to demand for rental stock for all styles of property. The ratio of supply once again outstripping demand is driving rents upwards, but the increasing tax and legislative burdens on landlords are also playing their part in the increase in rental levels. The private rented sector would arguably be healthier however, if the government created an environment more conducive to more landlords entering the market. However, new instructions are steadily increasing in number as new investor landlords become accustomed to the regulatory landscape.”
“Q3 2018 has been very busy in Aberdeen. The student demand has been very healthy despite various new student accommodation blocks being built throughout the city. We are also seeing more oil companies letting properties for new staff coming to Aberdeen, which is promising to see. However, it is still very important for landlords to have their property priced correctly, in good condition and to have good professional photos when advertising for rent, although there has been an increase in activity, there is still a lot of supply for tenants to choose from.”
“Q3 has brought with it pending registration for letting agents and all conscientious agents will have been consolidating and preparing their process to make sure compliance. Traditionally this quarter is the busiest time of year for agents and this year has not disappointed. With new student terms beginning and the regular summer boost in property sales, we’ve had another manic one. With light now at the end of the tunnel, I do not use the term ‘inundated’ loosely. Across the board, from short-term rentals to longer term and sales, both of our Glasgow and Paisley branches have been doing all we can to make sure we keep up with demand. The number of enquiries received in Q3 gives a true reflection on how necessary the PRS really is.”
“Q3 saw the high demand for quality properties continue its 2018 trend. TTL’s for Edinburgh central properties are generally less than 14 days. Rents have steadily risen and Cullen’s own data show YOY increases marginally above the wider market levels, notably in the 3 and 4 bed HMO sector. PRT’s for student properties have now commenced and are working well to date. Landlord enquiries are rising but tending to be for larger properties. Govt policies in recent times and lending restrictions, coupled with the recent BoE rates rise, seem to have curtailed smaller property BTL activity. CEC pressure on the Airbnb market is likely to cause some properties to move back into the private rented sector too which may ease rents. Property values continue to rise though so rental demand likely to continue to also rise steadily in the short to medium term.”
“Q3 has been strong, with rents continuing their upward trend and a reduction in TTL. Looking ahead, we are not seeing any signs of it slowing in the short term, with properties being marketed in advance and a lot of interest in the 1 and 2 bedroom markets. We expect a quieter festive period, but are still excited by the PRS and its potential for our investors. We have seen instances of tenants leaving early in their lease with the PRT now, but we are limiting void periods for our clients, maximising rent and getting the best tenants possible quickly.”
“The third quarter of 2018 has been an exceptionally busy period with the takeover and integration of another business. The market has been very buoyant with the usual student peak rush period and new landlords looking for solid investment opportunities. All this has been happening while preparing for the imminent deadline and launch of the Letting Agents Register in Scotland in October which we feel will be the historic defining moment in the Scottish lettings industry and will showcase diligent lettings agents as a professional industry. We at GPL embrace this new chapter in our industry.”
“As 2018 progresses, the influx of landlords switching their property from short-term to long-term lets accelerates. This is partly due to difficulty securing lets consistently in a saturated market and landlords realising, despite the promise of prime rents, the income generated is not being significantly more than that for long-term lets due to higher outgoings and the seasonally influenced market. Despite this, the lack of quality properties remains an issue, with numerous applications for each, particularly 1 and 2 bedroom flats. Landlords are responding to tenant demand by upgrading their properties, especially important since the introduction of the PRT.”
“Q3 has again been a very busy time for Aberdein Considine with high levels of applicants for every property. There has been plenty of activity throughout the city with the number of tenants outstripping supply which will no doubt be the main reason for the increase we have seen in monthly rents. If this trend continues, against a backdrop of more stringent regulations for buy to let finance and tax changes coming into force, then it is likely that supply will decrease among all types of property, leading to greater competition for the best homes to let and therefore higher asking prices.”
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