According to the numbers, over 330 deals were agreed every week in January - a rise of 195% on the same weeks last year, with over 36,700 tenants currently looking for a new London home, up 48% on 2020.
The firm says that whilst life in Central London might be quiet at the moment, behind the scenes there are a lot of new residents renting a property, no doubt looking forward to busier times in the summer and beyond. Dexters highlight that the last eight months have been the busiest PCL lettings market the estate agency has seen for the last five years, and the firm expects to see lettings values rise by 2% to 3% across PCL over 2021 and the volume of lettings transactions double.
The research found that the surge in lettings activity in the capital is particularly high in the West End and City of London areas and comes as tenants are looking in town because of attractive rents.
The majority of tenants currently registering are working professionals with jobs in Central London. As well as the West End and City of London, everywhere across London with access to green space has been exceptionally busy from Hampstead to Wimbledon and all points of the compass.
The upturn in the middle of London reflects a gradual return of people wanting to live close to their places of work as well as anticipated return to more exciting times in the coming summer, they foresee a full return to office working once the vaccine rollout is completed later this year.
Andy Shepherd, CEO of Dexters, comments: “Despite a few negative trading statements being reported by some on-line lettings agents, to the contrary DEXTERS lettings activity has been extremely robust and our data shows that the London rentals market is in good health. The COVID-19 vaccine rollout will help to breathe life back into central London and lead to a renaissance in the lettings market.
"London lettings properties are currently more affordable than pre-COVID and due to the lockdown and travel bans, many tenants can afford slightly bigger budgets. With our well established COVID-19 secure working practices, including initial video viewings, we are able to handle the current tenant demand on behalf of the 30,000 landlords we represent. With 9,000 new Landlords asking Dexters to let their property last year we remain full of confidence for the future.”
In a further study which surveyed of a sample of 30,000 London Landlords, the firm revealed that an overwhelming 99% of them are committed to their investment in the long term and 78% are looking to grow their portfolios. During 2020 there was a lot of choice for domestic tenants, because of the lower number of tourists and business travellers, which enabled many tenants to take longer lets and move closer to central London. The firm suggests that this trend is likely to reverse in 2021 as COVID-19 issues recede and short-term lettings return, this is most likely to put upward pressure on rents.
Matt Huybrechts, Dexters Mayfair Lettings Director, says: “Tenants are excited to find good value properties in the West End and City of London districts, both of which have good access to the river, parks and everything that Central London has to offer. Not only are people looking for pieds-à-terre but family homes as well and tenants are taking properties for lifestyle reasons, often they are working from home, have a bit more money to spend as a result of that and have one eye on a return to work and avoiding a commute.
“For every tenant leaving Central London for the Shires, we are seeing one return and look to be more central in London than they would normally be able to be.”
Dexters say that at the heart of this is the fact that there are no tourists in London currently. Apartments in London that would normally rent by the night are all empty and this has seen a sharp increase in available accommodation and resulted in some bargains.
Matt concludes: "This is likely to be a temporary phenomenon since in the medium term there is a shortage of accommodation in London, particularly in the centre, and as tourists, corporate lets and students all return to central London we expect the market to resume where it left off in the early part of 2020. The majority of tenants want to live as centrally as possible but we are also finding the leafier areas of Notting Hill, Wimbledon and Hampstead are attractive and that nearby areas in London Bridge, Southwark, Canary Wharf and Docklands are also seeing large scale demand."
