May
8
Citylets Rental Report (Q1 2012) reveals fast expanding PRS and steady rentals
Filed Under Property by DanCookson | Leave a Comment
Our first rental report covering 2012 is now available for download here: www.citylets.co.uk/reports
2012 will be a significant year for the Private Rented Sector (PRS) in Scotland as it experiences ongoing
expansion as well as an increase in regulation.
As far as the latest numbers are concerned the mix adjusted average for Scotland in Q1 2012 was £664,
2.6% up on the same period last year which suggests a reassuringly stable market for landlords and tenants
alike. Three bed flats which account for 10% of all properties let via Citylets saw a more substantial annual
rent increase of 5.8%. Two bed flats are still the most popular property type and account for 40% of all lets,
and in Q1 2012 rents for these were up 5.8%.
In Glasgow the mix adjusted average rent was up 2.8% on the year to £596, while in Edinburgh average rents
rose 2.9% and are now £788. Rents in Aberdeen experienced a much smaller annual rise of 0.7% to £913 in
Q1 2012, though it is worth mentioning that there has been rapid increase in rents of 5.9% since Q2 2012.
Aberdeen rents are currently 37.5% more expensive than the average in Scotland, 53% greater than Glasgow
and 15.9% more than Edinburgh. With international oil companies offering very generous accommodation
allowances it is not a surprise that prices are higher than anywhere else in the country.
May
2
Citylets Wins Best UK Niche Portal at Propertydrum B2B Awards
Filed Under Citylets.co.uk News, Did you Know...? by admin | Leave a Comment
We’re delighted to report Citylets.co.uk won best Niche Portal at the PROPERTYdrum B2B Awards in London on Tuesday 1st May. The ceremony showcased the top suppliers to the wider property sector with 17 categories judged by a panel of leading industry figures such as Mark Hayward (CEO NFoPP), Wendy Evans Scott (President NAEA), Ian Potter (Operations Director ARLA) and Alan Collett (President RICS).
Commenting on the win, Founder and MD of Citylets Thomas Ashdown said:
“We’re obviously delighted to win this award and from such a distinguished judging panel. The big 3 Portals, soon to be 2, dominate the headlines day after day but there are, and perhaps agents should be encouraged to know, credible Niche sites in the UK. We are very grateful to Propertydrum for having the insight to recognise this and provide an award category.”
The win came on the same day that Experian Hitwise again confirmed Citylets.co.uk as the No 1 Lettings Site in the UK (April 2012) in a custom category of residential letting sites. We continue to invest in our brand and are, we believe, starting to see a clear gap opening up between us and competitors in terms of visitor numbers.
Apr
19
Build to Rent scheme gets go ahead in Dundee
Filed Under Citylets.co.uk News, Did you Know...?, Market News, Renting news, Scottish Property News by DanCookson | Leave a Comment
As the Private Rented Sector (PRS) continues to expand it is good to see that Public Sector and Private Sector are working together and coming up with innovative funding and tenure models to re-develop this historic site in Dundee. The properties will be let on short assured tenancies at mid-market rents affordable to households on annual incomes of £15,000-£25,000. If you haven’t yet heard of Mid Market Rents (MMR) you will be hearing the term a lot more in the future as Councils and Registered Social Landlords look to the PRS to help in the urgent need to supply more housing.
Citylets recently provided bespoke analysis of the PRS in Glasgow for a major report in to MMR in Glasgow entitled “Research into the Potential Market for Mid Market Rent in Glasgow”. A copy of the report can be found on the Glasgow Council site http://www.glasgow.gov.uk/en/Business/Housing/HousingStrategy/Latest_News/index.htm
Dundee council is teaming up with local developer Keiller Estates and the Scottish Government’s National Housing Trust (NHT) to transform the site of the former William Halley & Sons premises at Wallace Craigie Works on Broughty Ferry Road.
It will be interesting to see if this development will have an impact on achieved rents in the area. Citylets clients wanting to track the trends can do so yourself by simply searching the Optilet tool for postcode DD4 6DN or area Stobswell.
The full article can be seen on The Courier Web site:
Apr
3
Citylets Grows Throughout Q1 2012
Filed Under Citylets.co.uk News, Did you Know...? by admin | Leave a Comment
Citylets continued its growth trend recording a 10% uplift in visitor traffic over Q1 2012 compared to 2011 (source: Google Analytics), growth which was reflected to agent enquiries which were up 9% (source: Citylets Internal Data).
Offices on site grew a substantial 9% over the quarter, an increase close to the total growth for 2011. Citylets MD Thomas Ashdown commented:
“It is re-assuring to see our continued investment being reflected to our figures for the quarter. Citylets has been diversifying its advertising channel base over recent months in response to the fast changing digital landscape. We look forward to launching new initiatives in q2 of 2012.”
Growth in leads to agents in Q1 2012 was most noticeable in Dundee where figures for the quarter were over 5 times what they were last year. Dundee has been a key target area for development for Citylets since mid 2010.
Aberdeen continued its impressive growth trajectory recording its 12th consecutive quarterly year on year increase, with leads 60% up on last year and 200% up on just 3 years ago.
Citylets.co.uk is, according to Experian Hitwise, the most visited residential lettings site in the UK (March 2012).
Mar
22
Citylets Goes Local – a new series of blogs profiling the private rental markets in neighbourhoods and towns across Scotland
Filed Under Aberdeen Property News, Blogroll, Citylets Rental Reports, Did you Know...?, Letting agents, Market News, Property, Renting news, Scottish Property News by DanCookson | Leave a Comment
Citylets are well recognised as the definitive source of rental trend info in Scotland and Northern Ireland. With so much useful information at our fingertips we have decided to complement our regular quarterly report with a new series of short blogs highlighting local areas.
We are kicking the series off with a profile of the most expensive rental areas in Scotland as of Q4 2011.
Aberdeen’s West End is the most expensive area in the country to rent, with the average monthly rent for a 2-bed flat currently stands at £972, compared with the national average 2-bed rent of £626. Following closely behind is Edinburgh’s New Town (average monthly 2-bed rent £946) and the capital’s West End (average monthly 2-bed rent £889).
The map below is taken from our Optilet system which helps agents and landlords see in detail what is happening in their local letting market. The colour coding gives agents an instant impression of where the premium priced properties as well as the more affordable flats can be found.
A very nice example of an Aberdeen town house upper conversion is this 3 bed flat in Hamilton Place, Rosemount which is currently being advertised by Aberdein Considine (Aberdeen) for £1,800 per calendar month http://www.citylets.co.uk/property-rent/rosemount-hamilton-place-ab15-234417/
Citylets Map of West End Aberdeen
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