(Alliance News) – The outlook for the private rental market is “unusually uncertain” following nearly two decades of robust growth, according to a report.
The rental market review said that as the market moves out of the pandemic, the future is clouded by economic uncertainty and shifts in housing preferences.
The review was compiled for the Mortgage Works, a subsidiary of Nationwide Building Society.
Robert Gardner, Nationwide’s chief economist, said: “The outlook is unusually uncertain in the wake of Covid-19.
“As well as the enormous uncertainty surrounding the near-term path for the economy, there is also scope for the pandemic to have profound effects on the pattern of economic activity and housing demand in the years ahead which could have important implications for the [private rental sector].”
Gardner said the proportion of households in the private rental sector in England edged down for the third year in a row in 2020, to 18.7%, from 19.3% in 2019 and 20.3% in 2017.
He said: “This represented a significant shift after almost two decades of robust growth….
