Page 36 - ESPC Magazine - September2021

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LETTING ADVICE

THE SCOTTISH RENTAL MARKET:

AN UPDATE Moving in together? Look after

The latest Citylets data is in! Nicky Lloyd, Head of ESPC Lettings, takes us through the stats for Q2,
with an update on how the rental market is performing across Scotland. your rights

It’s been a buoyant second quarter for the working, or that more students are coming
Scottish rental market, with some positive to the market with a need for larger shared The coronavirus crisis saw agreement– not just if you buy together
but if one partner moves in and starts
signs of recovery from the past 18 months. housing. many couples decide to contributing to the mortgage.
With restrictions easing, and students
returning to university, the Scottish national Using data from Citylets and ESPC, we can buy property together – The good news is that during lockdown,
average rent has risen to an all-time high of reveal that three-bedroom homes in EH8 perhaps to save on two rents, we saw a huge rise in the number of
£883 per month. produced the best rental yield at 5.8%, closely perhaps because lockdown couples making these agreements; the
followed by one-bedroom properties in EH5 bad news is that too many couples are still
Properties have also been letting faster, with at 5.6%. EH11 and EH3 also performed well, accelerated their relationship. not protecting their rights. We like to see a
the average time to let now six days quicker with the former’s three-bedroom properties cohabitation agreement as an insurance
than 2020, at 34 days. and the latter’s one-bedroom properties both But too many couples overlook the policy – you hope you will never need it, but
producing yields of 5.4%. importance of protecting their personal it’s there to protect you if you do.
Edinburgh saw signs of a bounce back from finances when they do this. Two common
the last quarter. The average rent in the Outside of the Capital, West Lothian recorded misconceptions can be problematic: We’d be happy to help.
Capital decreased 0.6% year-on-year, to a 13.2% increase in average rental price year-
£1,115 per month, although this decline is an on-year to £736. The average time to let in 1. Many people assume their finances Claire Brown
improvement on the impact we saw in 2020. West Lothian was 18 days, while one-bedroom will still be ‘separate’ when they Solicitor, Family Law

Properties also let slightly slower than the properties let the fastest at an average of just cohabit - for example that if they put clairebrown@lindsays.co.uk
national average, taking 38 days. 15 days, with 25% of them let within a week. in a larger share of the deposit, they
will get it all back. In reality, unless 0131 656 5763
they have a legal agreement specifying
Larger properties were generally in higher With positive signs on the horizon, we look what happens if they split or sell, this
demand across Scotland but particularly in forward to seeing what the next quarter may not be the case.
Edinburgh, where three- and four-bedroom brings for the Scottish rental market.
properties recorded average rent growth of 2. Cohabitees often assume they have the
3% and 1.8% respectively. In contrast, one- ESPC Lettings is an Edinburgh letting agent. same rights as married couples. In fact,
and two-bedroom properties proved less We can help with marketing your rental their rights are not the same, which can
popular, and Edinburgh had a greater supply property and finding the right tenants. easily lead to financial problems or Cohabitation agreement
of these properties on the market. This trend Contact the team on 0131 253 2847 or legal battles with wider family.
supports the ideas that tenants are seeking landlord@espc.com.
more living space to accommodate home Both misconceptions can cause serious
upset down the line for cohabitees, and one
simple solution is to have a cohabitation

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