Gazumping in the rental market.

Well, it had to happen......... This is how Globrix reported the new trend of Gazumping in the rental market. With the sales market cooling down, and many discretionary movers and first time buyers now waiting to see what the market does in the next few months, the demand for rental properties has increased to previously unseen levels within a very short space of time. Rental yields, which up until recently were languishing around an average of 3%, are now being tipped by industry experts to hit an average of 7% by the end of the year. And with a ratio of 4 applicants to every property available to rent, it’s a very fast moving market.

So rapid is the turnover of rental property at the moment, that desperate would-be tenants are outbidding each other for the ideal property. Enter the spectre of Gazumping to the rental market. Letting agents up and down the country are reporting increased incidences of people arriving at properties with their cheque book and pen, ready to put down a holding deposit there and then because they’ve narrowly missed out on other properties and are getting desperate.

Gone are the days where there was an opportunity to haggle over the rent. Now, the tables have turned and landlords are cherry-picking the most suitable tenants who are prepared to pay the most rent.

So, if you are on the lookout for a property to rent right now – don’t dawdle. Do your research to keep an eye on what’s out there every day to be the first to get into a property, which will give you an advantage over other tenants.

Once you’re there, if you can, make an immediate decision about the property, and put down a holding deposit to avoid losing out. Also, try and be flexible. Chances are, because rents are rising and there are so many other potential tenants out there, you may not find exactly what you want, but if something ticks enough boxes, right now it might be worth going for. Because chances are, if you don’t take it, someone else will !

Paul at Moray Rentals advised me over a slice of M&S Maderia cake that this phenonema has yet to hit the shores of Moray, but as with everything else, he expects it to arrive in the next couple of months - you've been warned !

All the best,

Mr Jackson.