Students face two years of challenging housing supply as rental stock dwindles while demand remains high.
According to rental guarantor service Housing Hand, with rent reforms now not due until after the current period of student admissions is complete, the impact will be felt in full next year when the supply challenge is set to be even more acute.
It reports that students in particularly oversubscribed locations are already having to adjust their expectations by accepting less space than they would like or paying for larger properties than they need, due to the lack of choice.
Some students would also face longer journey times to campus after being forced to revise their expectations about property location.
6% more students
Research by Save the Student shows that 46% of students already rent from private landlords during term time rather than in halls or with family – an increase of 6% on last year.
This extensive demand means that both students and working professionals will be hard-pressed to secure accommodation over the coming weeks.
“The influx of students into the private rented sector is always a challenge in terms of meeting demand and this year will be even more so, given the lower number of landlords in the market,” says James Maguire, head of sales and business development (pictured).
“That’s why students will need to be flexible in terms of their expectations.”
Housing Hand has seen a 50% increase in applications for rental guarantors over the past six months and says many students are using the firm’s partnership with Canopy, which delivers rapid referencing services, so that they’re ready to move fast if they find the perfect property.
