The rental sector has doubled in size in the past 20 years, with an estimated 19% of households now renting privately, according to the English Housing Survey.
With the pandemic changing how everyone lives and works, and a decline in private landlords, we’re seeing a trend gaining fast ground in the UK: Build to Rent (BTR).
BTR, or ‘multi-family’ living, already has a strong presence in the US and is experiencing a boost into the UK. Lockdown has catapulted the market forward, with renters seeking the flexibility and lifestyle BTR can offer.
Live, work, play
The pandemic has reframed 9-5 office days as a thing of the past, so renters are now seeking living spaces that encompass life, work and play.
Easy access to coffee, food and entertainment are increasingly sought after as people forgo the daily commute. While a luxury swimming pool within an apartment complex would have drawn renters pre-pandemic, sociable perks are now more enticing, such as bars, cinemas and gym studios.
For example, Mainstay managed Ferrum building offers stylish New York style apartments to rent in Wembley Park and personal services such as an on-site hairdresser. Other developments have transformed rooftops into gardens for socialising or invested in a communal office space.
Pets – the new furry flatmate
Over the course of the pandemic, 3.2million homes welcomed a new pet. The rental sector has traditionally been difficult for pet owners, but the BTR sector is embracing demand. In 2021 the government updated the Model Tenancy Agreement to encourage landlords to offer greater flexibility in their approach to pet ownership. Developers are now not only allowing pets, but they are also offering services to appeal to pet owners. Some developments now offer dog walking and bespoke grooming areas. A co-living layout means renters can easily organise ‘meet-ups’ with animal owning neighbours.
BTR gives new life to ‘dead’ retail spaces
Sadly, the pandemic has hit our high streets hard, with the likes of Arcadia and Debenhams leaving roughly 200 full-size football pitches of large-scale retail space now vacant, according to Altus Group. Department stores are harder to fill with new retail, due to their sprawling spaces, but this does provide an opportunity for BTR to convert retail premises into residential sites.
Retired rental living
The profile of renters is changing –no longer driven by city-dwelling, young professionals. A new market of over-55s is migrating towards renting, drawn in by purpose-built communities and flexibility. Quality of housing is interlinked with physical, mental, and emotional wellbeing and enabling people to choose how they live with the flexible offering of independence and care if needed is appealing.
Former care homes, such as Hilltop Lodge in Epping, are planning to repurpose their space into BTR retirement developments where residents have their own flats with communal lounges, and we continue to work with more seaside locations popular with the over 60s demographic.
Beyond big-city-living
The pandemic has encouraged everyone to reconsider how and where they want to live. Young professionals looking to rent are now looking outside of Central London. This will be a catalyst for the BTR market to move across the UK and we’re seeing that play out already.
Currently, 84% of all UK BTR planned developments are outside of Central London, and over the last year, we’ve seen an increase in developer demand for sites in Brighton and the South Coast.
BTR has come a long way in the last few months and is set to evolve even further as the world gradually adjusts to the new ‘normal’ and I expect new demands, trends and challenges will continue to emerge.
Ultimately, the widening mortgage gap and the appeal of greater flexibility will drive the demand for high-quality, professionally managed rental homes. The post-Covid-19 world provides a huge opportunity for BTR to evolve with the times and deliver on its commitment to change the rental market, keeping consumer needs and desires at its core.
