According to a survey from Paragon, which collated views from 750 landlords, 94 per cent of respondents in Central London said they had strong levels of tenant demand.
The remaining six per cent said levels of demand had stayed stable.
The report also showed that the appeal of properties in the capital has been increasing, reversing the pandemic trend where properties outside of London grew in popularity.
Paragon said that in the second quarter of 2020 only 12 per cent of Central London landlords had reported heightened tenant demand. This compares to 90 per cent in Q4 2022.
Other regions have reported strong tenant demand, with around 92 per cent of landlords in East of England and Wales highlighting this trend, followed by 90 per cent of landlords in North East.
‘Record level of increased tenant demand’
Richard Rowntree (pictured), managing director for mortgages at Paragon Bank, said: “A lot was said about the impact of the pandemic on the Central London rental market, with a number of factors such as the rise in home working and increased desire for access to green space leading to demand for centrally located homes apparently falling off a cliff.
“While I feel that this trend was more evident amongst owner occupiers and overstated in terms of the effect on the rental market, it is nevertheless interesting to see landlords in Central London report the highest levels of tenant demand currently and during the previous three months.”
He continued: “In addition, we see that the overall record high level of increased tenant demand reported in Q3 2022 continued into the final quarter of last year. This is unsurprising given the pressure on household finances and the relative affordability of rented homes, reinforcing the need for an environment that encourages investment in the private rented sector.”
