Property website reports 8% rise in newly-marketed properties to rent

Rental sector tenants saw a boost in the supply of properties for them to choose from in the second quarter of this year, according to a property website.

There were 8% more newly-marketed rental properties in the second quarter of this year across England and Wales compared with the same period in 2015, Rightmove reported.

In London, the supply of properties being newly-marketed was up by 22% on the same period last year, it said.

The injection of fresh supply comes after a stamp duty hike imposed for buy-to-let investors, imposed on April 1.

Ahead of the tax changes, estate agents reported investors rushing to beat the deadline by snapping up properties. Many of the homes that were bought by landlords may now be being made available to renters.

Rightmove's head of lettings Sam Mitchell said: "Whilst it's too early to speculate or predict any long-term impact of Brexit for the rental market, these latest figures show that it's business as usual for tenants looking for a place to rent.

"Naturally we saw a dip in demand the three days after the referendum result, but that soon returned to usual levels of searching.

"If confidence in buying houses does falter it could lead to more people looking to rent, perhaps in the short-term, and that would mean that rents could rise further."