The speed with which the housing and rental market re-opened in May caught many people by surprise, but the volume of activity in the market since then hasn’t been a shock. Many industry experts believed there would be a high level of demand for homes when the market was able to re-open, and so it proved.

This shouldn’t be seen as a surprise, because there were many reasons for this spike in activity. For starters, there were 370,000 property deals placed on hold when lockdown occurred, and many of these people were always going to re-engage the market as soon as the chance arose.

Also, when you consider some of the leading reasons people move home, it was inevitable the rental market would be impacted. A change in employment circumstances or a change in relationship status often drive people to look for new rental accommodation, and this would have been a factor in the initial activity.

There are always reasons for people to move rental property

While the initial increase in demand in May was expected, there is evidence which suggests this demand has continued into June for the letting market. It is wise to remain cautious about what will happen next in the market, but information from Goodlord and their Letting Activity Tracker suggested there is still significant demand for letting options.

The company found the busiest day for new applications came on 2nd June. On this day, there was 112% of the number recorded on the same day in 2019.

The busiest day for lets being completed came on 10th June. The year-on-year figure saw an increase of 124% compared to the 2019 figures. It is also reported new applications are holding at an average of 97% of the 2019 levels in the first two weeks of June.

There is strong demand in the rental market right now

Since the beginning of June, the level of completed lets stands at 94% of the 2019, and completed lets have risen since the start of the second week. A lot of attention will fall on these figures at the end of the month to see if this trend continues.

Also, between 7th June and 13th June, the number of completed lets have remained at a higher level than the 2019 average.

Tom Mundy is the COO at Goodlord, and he said; “It’s been an incredibly busy few weeks for letting agents, landlords and tenants. They’ve risen admirably to the dual challenges of a surge in demand coupled with a totally new way of working and doing business.  We are starting to see some much-needed stability and consistency in the market. Alongside this, we’re seeing agents embrace new tools, processes and strategies to ensure lettings can continue safely across the UK.”

As an experienced letting agent serving the Bridgwater community, and many of the surrounding areas, we are here to help. We promise to stay in touch with the latest technology, helping our clients to achieve more, and we aim to support the local community as best we can. If there is anything, we can assist you with; please contact Andrew Lees Lettings today.