You may already be aware of the housing for sale/rent percentage divide across the country having read our most recent Property & Homemover Report, reflecting the latest stats for Q3 2019 data and revealing the true picture across some of the UKs major cities.
In our report, we reveal that rental housing stock availability is strong in Edinburgh (45%), Newcastle (44%), Birmingham (48%), Cardiff (44%) and Southampton (49%). In Leeds (53%), Manchester (59%) and London (76%), availability of homes for rent are stronger still and dominate in these cities vs. housing available for sale.
You might also be surprised to know that renters account for 1.3m home moves every year in the UK – slightly more than the 1.2m property sales – and it's a market that shows no signs of slowing down.
So what characterises the UK rental audience?
- Household income band – over half the number of rentals are households with an income of £30k-£60k, whereas the same cannot be said for all properties both owner occupied and privately rented nationwide. Renters are most over-represented by homes in the £150k+ household income band, where a renter is 37% more likely to be in this bracket.
- Property size and type – rented properties are more likely to be homes with one bedroom (20%) or two bedrooms (40%), though this is not the case for all properties nationwide. When it comes to property type, flats (46%) and terraced properties (30%) are most popular with rented properties, whereas nationwide they are less popular (25% and 27% respectively).
- Household composition – rental properties are more likely to be occupied by singles (33%) and homesharers (18%) when compared to the national average of all properties. Whilst 49% of families also rent, this number is less than the 63% figure representing all households across the country lived in by families.
UK consumer profiling tools such as Mosaic, Acorn and Cameo give further insight into the types of consumers that make up the rental market.
Renting as a favoured lifestyle choice
Renting property is increasingly a lifestyle choice and not simply a consequence of being priced out of homeownership. Whilst lower income earners are being squeezed in this way, there also exists another audience representing affluent consumers who have electively chosen to rent, likely with high profile jobs where a central city location is preferred. There are of course also other reasons for renting that aren’t about cost alone; flexibility, for example is a big draw, and is a factor that cuts though all demographics.
Consumers who rent their homes represent a valuable audience not to be overlooked when it comes to planning your next marketing programme.
Is your brand catering for the rental market? How might you adapt?
Our data, insight and marketing expertise can help you to reach consumers who are ready to buy, using the right message at the right time via the best media channel for your audience.
Would you like to find out more?
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