For many of PLG’s clients the first time they get a taste of an adapted property is when we locate and adapt a property for them to rent. It provides a home to bridge the gap between moving from what is often wholly unsuitable accommodation to the ultimate forever home that they will buy.
So rental is a really important part of our clients’ journey and can be the start to implementing proper care and therapy regimes as well as providing a new start for our clients and their families.
However, in the current climate we are seeing a significant rise in rental costs which will impact upon our clients. This coincides with the rise in inflation and the subsequent increased cost of living. And the trend is becoming more widespread. In 2021 provincial areas in particular saw significant rises in the cost of renting and this is often where our clients choose to live.
But the shortages are now being felt in the metropolitan areas and in London especially as people are flocking back to the cities to live and work and there are simply not enough properties available to rent. At the same time the Office for Budget Responsibility, the government’s fiscal watchdog, has forecast a 2.2% drop in real take-home pay which is one of the largest on record. For some the drop will be anything up to 6% according to the Resolutions Foundation thinktank. And for those trying to afford rent as well budget for the increase in the cost of living, there is currently little to look forward to.
To make matters even tougher, supply and demand mean that the cost of rental is on the rise. Some analysts have put the average rise in rental costs at 8.3% which in many cases will outstrip the average rise in salaries which are already generally well below the rate of inflation. But this rise will often also exceed the amounts that our clients are able to allow for from interim payments of damages which may have been granted prior to this recent surge in costs. We have previously reported that we’ve experienced gazumping for the first time ever on rentals and this is still an issue in some areas of demand.
Add to this the increased fuel costs from April, as well as the uncertainty that the war in Ukraine has brought to these costs, and the prospect of levels of inflation rising still higher, rental costs are just part of an increase on all fronts while the average worker is earning less in real terms.
Our clients are generally in receipt of damages either by way of interim payments or as a final award and, whilst some allowance is made for increasing costs year on year for some parts of an award, the current increase in the cost of living is outstripping this. The costs of accommodation, including rent, will often sit outside that more protected area of the award known as a periodical payment in any event. It will become ever trickier how to balance the needs of the client with the awards that have already been made, but for those where awards are yet to be made or interim payments are yet to be granted it is vital that the increases that we are seeing in the rental market, together with the rise in the cost of living generally, is taken into account.
We sincerely hoped that costs of living including rental costs in a post Covid era would be more stable and more predictable. But the current climate suggests the reverse is true. Costs on all fronts are rising and to be able to secure a tenancy for our clients and to protect their interests is becoming an ever greater challenge.
Fortunately, at PLG we have a priceless commodity that is vital right now. Experience! The vast majority of our Property Search team are former estate agents and in addition to this we have a vast amount of experience in finding properties for clients who have suffered catastrophic injuries.
This priceless commodity is put to good use day in and day out when dealing with agents and landlords up and down the country finding, and more importantly securing properties for our clients.
If you would like to know how we could help your client find a rental property please get in touch on 0333 577 0809 or at hello@plg.uk.
Click here to get more information on how we can help you (https://plg.uk/property-finders/)