A recent report has confirmed that virtually all Eastbourne landlords have agreed that tenant demand has never been stronger – in fact it’s growing. The figures show that landlords have announced a 6.2% yield on their portfolio which is a slight increase during this second quarter of the year from the previous quarter where the average yield was around 6.1%. What’s significant for landlords is this figure has remained steadily consistent over the last 12 months showing that the demand for tenants has remained consistent – something all landlords should be pleased with.
In this same quarter of the year 38% reported they were feeling increasingly optimistic about the future of growth for the properties in their portfolios. Encouraging figures show that from the remainder 56% of landlords reported feeling no change in their views (this could have been much lower) and only 4% reported a negative slant and worries about growth in the future.
An even more optimistic figure is that 16% of landlords reported looking forward to adding to their portfolio of property over the next quarter. As industry figures go these all point towards a hopeful final quarter to the year.
According to the survey there has been zero change in the sorts of property that people are choosing to invest. As previous reports showed, terraced houses are by far the most popular with 55% of buyers looking forward to continuing to invest in this type of housing.
What was remarkable was that there has been a marginal increase in the popularity of detached houses. 15% of the landlords surveyed reported looking forward to owning this type of property compared to only 12% in the previous quarter.
So how do Eastbourne landlords perceive the future? Well 72% agreed that the levels of rental arrears would remain stable over the next four quarters, and only 11% believed they would increase. This is great feedback as it shows that a majority have faith in the next year of landlord / tenant rentals.
One Eastbourne landlord was quoted as saying “It is interesting that we can see an improvement in landlords’ confidence in rentals in the private sector as well as the buy to let market. This is due to the continuing strong demand for rentals as well as the investments made by landlords.”
He went on to add, “We can all see that demand for Eastbourne tenants is remaining healthy and as the figures show this trend should continue over the next few quarters, particularly due to the fact we are not seeing the level of house building in the wider market that is so desperately needed.”
All in all this survey is a great indicator for our industry and shows that the majority of landlords are looking forward to a good forthcoming year. However you may have your own story to tell. Let’s revisit this topic in 12 months to see if these predictions are borne out.
