Tenants would pay more to live with good housemates, showing that affordability isn’t the only requirement when renting an HMO.
Indeed, nearly half (47.2%) of shared living tenants would happily pay a 10% premium if they knew that they were socially compatible with their housemates, research from HMO management platform COHO shows.
Vann Vogstad, founder and chief executive of COHO, said: “In order to have a good social experience when living in a shared house, it’s vital that you get along with your housemates, yet it remains far too common for tenants to have little control or insight over this compatibility before moving in because they’re not given a good enough opportunity to understand the personalities, interests and lifestyles of the people they’re agreeing to live with.”
Britain’s average rent has increased by 8.1% in the past year alone to sit at £1,338 per month, so many prefer to rent HMOs for affordability reasons.
However, 48.6% of tenants also see the ‘sociable way of living’ as a key benefit, while 43% said it was ‘good for people moving to new cities’ looking to form social relationships.
Vogstad added: “HMO landlords who can provide their existing and prospective tenants with a good level of insight into the people they’ll be living with have a better chance of creating a relaxed, harmonious vibe in the house — which is great for tenants and, let’s be honest, good for business too.
“Not only are you going to reduce tenant churn and, therefore, void periods, but as our survey reveals, you’re also creating the opportunity to charge a premium on your rent simply for giving your tenants the best chance of living with people they like.”
