Cost of renting

gemmab94

My partner and I have been looking at renting a house for the first time, but we are unsure of what affect covid 19 will have on the cost of this. Is rent likely to get more expensive after the lockdown?

Grumpy_chap

No-one on here or anywhere else can give you a clear answer as it requires a crystal ball and lots of speculation.

• Maybe there will be a pent-up demand immediately after lock-down that pushes rents up?
• Maybe there will be a collapse of the housing market so making it easier for first time buyers to buy, so reducing demand for rents and rent prices go down?
• Maybe something entirely different, I am sure there is a plausible argument that could be made right now for any outcome you wished to speculate would happen.

In the long term, I can only imagine that demand for housing will exceed supply for purchase and rent so the costs will be extortionately high.
If you are really in the market to rent somewhere in the near future, you may find that right now is a good time to negotiate if demand is suppressed.  You are still allowed to view and move (so long as social distancing is respected).  You will only be able to find out if you make enquiries and, if landlords see it as an opportunity to push rates right up straight away you know to wait.
Anything else anyone says is just speculation.  Good luck with your lives together

Fire_Fox

You do not define "after the lockdown". The restrictions are expected to be lifted in stages over many months. There will be no obvious before and after.  Currently there are restrictions on evictions, on viewings and moving is discouraged but not blocked.

Right now in many areas rents on empty properties are much reduced. Viewings and paperwork are largely being conducted virtually. It would be reasonable to expect landlords will be seeking decent deposits or references or guarantors from tenants who are completely new to the market. If you have you funds in place, now is a good time to rent.

It would be prudent not to overstretch yourselves because juggling bills for the first time is challenging and your income may be insecure. Consider a modern flat rather than a house: the fewer outside walls you have, the warmer the property remains in Winter.

HTH!

P1

I suspect in a few months when this depression starts to bite then the prices will be lower.  Lots of people will be unable to pay their rent.  

RyanHello

You may want to wait a few months before renting a place. There may be an attractive "fire sale" when things calm down. Find yourself a nice area, settle for a few years the move on to somewhere else. That's the attractive thing about renting!