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HMO stock levels continue to fall, now down -2.4%
This article is an external press release originally published on the Landlord News website, which has now been migrated to the Just Landlords blog.
Market analysis by debt advisory specialists Sirius Property Finance reveals which areas of England are home to the greatest abundance of HMO stock as well as those with the most significant decline.
The analysis shows that there are an estimated 489,701 HMO properties, accounting for 2% of the nation’s entire dwelling stock.
London is home to the largest number of HMOs with 145,615 properties accounting for 4% of the capital’s homes, while the South East’s 69,102 HMOs make up 1.7% of the regional total.
The region with the fewest HMOs is the North East where 17,378 properties account for 1.4% of the region’s dwellings, but the region where HMOs account for the smallest percentage of local homes is East Midlands where 21,752 properties account for just 1% of the whole housing market.
Annual HMO stock changes
Across the nation as a whole, the number of HMOs has fallen by -2.4% in the past year, but this drop is dwarfed by regional declines.
The East Midlands has recorded an annual HMO stock decline of -26.1%, the North East has seen HMO stock levels drop by a -15.8% drop, while in the South East numbers are down -6.7%.
Declines, however, are not universal across all regions. The likes of the West Midlands (16.9%) and Yorkshire & Humber (11.2%) have recorded annual stock growth over the past year.
Kimberley Gates, Head of Corporate Partnerships at Sirius Property Finance, comments: “Any legislative change designed to improve tenant welfare is a positive one on the face of it, but much like the regular buy-to-let sector, a perhaps overly heavy handed approach by the Government has led to a decline in the number of HMOs available across the nation.
“The implications of this decline to tenants are inevitably a higher cost when renting, due to the growing imbalance between HMO supply and demand.
“However, as the HMO sector continues to find its feet in the wake of these legislative changes, it presents a great opportunity for investors entering the space who can hit the ground running and capitalise on high tenant demand levels. Providing they have their house in order in terms of licensing and living standards, of course.”
