2 YEAR HIGH FOR PROPERTIES ON THE RENTAL MARKET
The number of properties available for rent on the Edinburgh market has increased sharply since August and, in the first week in December, is sitting higher than at any point since summer 2021.
This is a significant change in the market and the result is that rents are cooling and for the first time in over 2 years there appear to be more properties on the market than prospective tenants. Prospective tenants have more choice and are able to shop around for a good deal. This is a big change to the frenzied market during the summer where there were more than 100 applicants for some properties.
This is a welcome shift in the market dynamics for prospective tenants as rents have stopped rising and the rental market is much more accessible due to the slow down in how fast properties are letting. Whilst it’s likely these conditions will prevail over the winter months, it’s not likely that there is a change to the underlying lack of supply in the rental sector in Edinburgh where there are far fewer properties available each year compared with the number of people looking to rent.
For tenants, it’s good news. Rents will stabilise, properties will move slower on the market and they will ultimately have more choice.
For landlords, there might be a few more void days in between tenancies but these should be short lived.
For letting agencies, the changing market conditions require a change of tactics to respond to tenants with increased buying power. This will likely be the case until the spring.