A quarterly index suggests that there’s been a sharp uplift in tenant demand for rental properties across the UK’s major cities as lockdown starts to ease.

Of all major cities outside of London analysed by lettings agency Barrows and Forrester, Birmingham has seen the biggest increase in rental demand so far this year with a 25.2 per cent uplift.

Bournemouth has also seen a considerable increase of 23.3 per cent, while Cardiff is up 18.6 per cent; Southampton demand has risen by 16.8 per cent while Newport is 16.4 per cent up.
Of 18 cities analysed, only Liverpool and Belfast have seen rental demand drop during the first quarter of this year, down 2.3 and 15.8 per cent respectively

Within London, Enfield demand is up 25.6 per cent – the highest rise in the capital – with Waltham Forest, Haringey and Sutton all up slightly more than 20 per cent.

“It’s been a very tough year for landlords and many have seen their rental income reduce due to tenants falling on tough financial times, while others have struggled to find a tenant in the first place” explains agency managing director James Forrester.

“As a result, early signs of rental demand returning to the market will be very welcome indeed and, as we ease out of lockdown, this is a trend we will hopefully see increase throughout the remainder of the year.

“The green light for some university students to return and the fast-approaching start of a new academic year should further boost this initial increase in demand and so things are certainly starting to look up for the UK rental sector.”

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