The UK rental market continues to attract growing numbers of tenants, with a new report showing another rise in tenant demand.
The shortage of rental homes compared with the number of tenants seeking them has been a long-running theme in the UK’s private rented sector for some years, with landlords in some locations reporting sky-rocketing numbers of tenants enquiring about the properties they list for rent.
While myriad factors contribute to this, including first-time buyers getting onto the property ladder later than ever, it has led to continually rising rental prices in the sector. More recently, though, the rent rises have become more steady, creating a more sustainable outlook for the market in the face of higher tenant demand.
The latest Housing Insight Report from Propertymark has revealed that tenant demand continues to outpace supply, with an average of 10 applicants for each available property in February.
Compared with this time last year, tenant demand has increased, says Propertymark, with an average of 100 registrations per member branch in February 2025, compared with an average of 95 in February last year. December’s figure was also significantly higher, showing continued strong demand in the rental market.
Strong tenant demand reduces void periods
Void periods are an important measure of the health of the rental market, as they indicate the strength of tenant demand and the speed of the market as a whole. For landlords, minimising the length of time a rental property sits empty between tenancies is vital for boosting overall returns.
Propertymark’s report shows that average void periods reported by member agents have been static for three weeks in the latest February figures. This comes after they increased towards the end of last year. The average is now around three weeks per property, although this will vary largely from home to home and across different locations.
In particularly fast-paced markets – often in city centres where tenant demand tends to remain at high levels – void periods can often be shorter than in more remote locations.
Of course, some void periods are inevitable, such as if a property needs essential maintenance or refurbishment after tenants have moved out. This is particularly the case where tenants have remained in a property for a long time – but long-term tenants can be beneficial for landlords, saving the time and money needed to arrange new tenancies.
Rental arrears fall
Rental arrears are another factor that no landlord wants to deal with, but are something that must be taken into consideration as a possibility with each tenancy. According to Propertymark, there has been a “welcome decrease” in rental arrears in the latest figures.
They fell from an average of around 3.5% in January to around 2% in February, which is towards the lower range and is a positive indication of the state of consumer finances.
Although the cost of living remains high, with inflation still above the government’s target, wage growth has also been strong over recent months, and this is thought to have offset some of the price rises on average.
In terms of rental prices, just over half (56%) of member agents reported that rents remained generally static, while only 12% reported an overall fall in rents and 31% said they believed rents had increased in February 2025.
One Propertymark member based in the North West said of the latest statistics: “The market continues to appear healthy as rents are stable and void periods minimal but landlords are weary about the Renters’ Rights Bill and already asking for sales valuations.”
Also commenting on the rental market in the latest report, Nathan Emerson, Propertymark CEO, said: ““In the lettings market, there remains no significant progress in the number of available properties to rent, therefore widening the gap between supply and demand.
“We need UK Government support to revitalise the market and incentivise investment before it’s too late.”
