London residential tenancies rise 19%

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by Gill Montia

Estate and letting agent, Your Move, has reported that the number of people renting in London has risen by 19% in the past year.

As first-time buyers hesitate to enter the market and mortgages remain both expensive and in short supply, residents of the capital have turned to the rental sector, bringing an end to several years of decline in London’s private rental market.

The opportunities provided to landlords by the property market slowdown are amply illustrated in the latest figures from The British Bankers’ Association (BBA) which has reported that new mortgage lending fell 23% in June.

In May, BBA members approved 27,499 new home loans but the figure declined to 21,118 last month, representing a 66.9% fall on the same period of 2007.

The annual fall is the most marked since the BBA’s records began in September 1997 and is evidence that the downturn in the UK’s housing market is gathering pace.