Tenant Survey 2017: What do tenants want?

A question commonly asked is: What do tenants want? 

Over the past few years, we have endeavoured to answer this question by carrying out surveys of those living in private rented accommodation. Last year we shared the responses of 5,000 tenants from across the UK, representing the largest sample in any survey of its kind. 

This not only allows us to share the most up-to-date headline trends on the key priorities for tenants when looking for a home, but also to drill down below the headline findings, pinpointing tenant groups and identifying their particular priorities – helping inform the market on a more localised basis.

Part of a series of posts, we look at a number of topics directly affecting and influencing the Private Rented Sector including identifying and analysing renter profiles. In this specific post we look at the key priorities when choosing a rental property and area.

Rental Properties

• Affordability is the key concern when looking at a rental property, re-affirming the findings of our previous two Tenant Surveys.
• However, it is interesting to note that location, the second biggest priority, is seen as a much larger concern than the size of the property itself. 

Key priority when looking at an area

• When looking at an area, affordability remains the key priority, but transport concerns follow close behind, with 35% citing the proximity to transport links or the ease of the commute to work as a factor.
• In London, these considerations are more important than the affordability of an area, with 44% saying transport or their commute is a key factor, compared to 38% who pick staying within budget as a priority.

Average commuting time*

• Across the UK, more than half of commuters live within a 30 minute journey from their place of work, while in London, this falls to 31%.
• However, even in the capital, only 16% of renters live more than an hour from work, underlining the trend towards reasonably central and/or well-connected locations for rental property. 

(Respondents in employment)

Transport

• Access to transport, especially when it comes to travelling to and from work, is a key theme among those looking for a home, especially in urban areas across the UK.
• More detailed survey questions show that while the main mode of transport for commuters is car, with 40% of respondents across the country saying that a car journey makes up the large proportion of their journey, a third rely on the train, metro or bus for the main portion of their commute.
• This trend reverses in London, with 42% of respondents saying that the London Underground is their main form of transport, plus a further 26% identifying mainline rail or bus.
• Some 68% of Londoners are mainly reliant on public transport, underlining the importance of, and opportunities, for large-scale transport infrastructure improvements.