Tenants staying in properties for longer, says ARLA

Tenants are staying in rental properties for a longer period of time, according to new research by ARLA.

It found that the typical renter stays in the same home for 20 months, which is the joint highest tenancy length recorded by the organisation.

This figure is up year on year from an average of 19 months in the first quarter of 2012, indicating that tenants are starting to take a longer-term view of renting a property.

Nearly 57 per cent of ARLA agents reported they are seeing more people looking for homes than there are properties available.

This high level of demand is making the market very competitive and may be discouraging existing tenants from moving, which in turn reduces the number of vacancies on the market.

“Our data suggested that tenants are increasingly sitting tight in their property and either reluctant, or unable to move. This stagnation means fewer and fewer properties are freed up,” commented Ian Potter, ARLA managing director.

Image: Pedro Tavares/Shutterstock