UK estate agents are racing to expand their lettings businesses as a booming rental market helps shore up profits hammered by a slowdown in home sales.
The rental market is proving a silver lining for estate agents that relied on sales to power the industry’s profits before a rapid rise in interest rates ended the UK’s house price boom.
While rising mortgage costs have throttled home sales, they have strengthened rental demand as buying a home becomes more expensive. Rents in the UK, which have long been supported by a shortage of supply, climbed in May at the fastest annual pace since 2016, according to the Office for National Statistics.
Read the full story on the Financial Times here.