Number of tenants negotiating rent reductions at all-time low

The proportion of tenants negotiating rent reductions fell from 1.6% in November to 1.1% in December, the lowest figure since records began in January 2015.

In contrast, ARLA Propertymark’s December PRS report found that 32% of agents witnessed rent increases in December.

This figure is up from 16% in December 2017 and 18% in December 2018.

David Cox, chief executive of ARLA Propertymark, said: “Since the tenant fees ban came into effect, our data shows that rents reached an all-time high last year.

“While we have seen a slight drop in the number of agents witnessing landlords increasing rents since then, overall rents remain high and now it seems that tenants are finding it harder than ever to negotiate a reduction in rent.

“As rents continue to rise, tenants will find it even more difficult to find suitable accommodation. Now that we have a new government in place, it’s important that long overdue legislative changes are implemented to make the market attractive again for both tenants and landlords.”

Demand from prospective tenants fell last month, with 56 prospective tenants registered per member branch, down from 67 in November.

This was the third consecutive month demand from prospective tenants has fallen.

The number of properties managed per branch also rose last month from 203 to 206.