Rent falls as lettings market grows
Updated on 18 November 2008
Rents fell during the third quarter of the year as the lettings market was flooded with property that had failed to sell, figures have showed.
The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors said many frustrated would-be-sellers opted to rent their homes after failing to secure a deal on them, causing the supply of rented property to outstrip demand for the second quarter running.
This helped to drive up the number of surveyors in Great Britain reporting a rise in listings to a new high for both flats and houses.
Overall, 50 per cent more surveyors reported seeing a rise in the number of flats that were on the rental market compared with those who saw a fall, while 68 per cent said there had been a rise in houses.
But the influx of supply forced down rents, causing them to drop for the first time since April 2003.
The glut of supply left 12 per cent more surveyors saying they had seen rents fall during the three months to the end of September compared with those who thought they had risen - the lowest level since the survey was first launched in 1998.
It was also a sharp turnaround from the previous quarter, when a balance of 31 per cent more surveyors said rents had increased.
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