The UK cities hit with the lowest level of rental stock

November 19, 2019

Leading lettings management platform, Howsy, has looked at where across the UK is home to the lowest level of rental stock to meet tenant demand.

Howsy looked at all property listings across the major portals and then looked at what percentage of these was accounted for by rental properties as opposed to properties for sale, to see where was most in need of more buy-to-let landlords.

The data shows that across the UK’s major cities an average of just 33.2% of all stock listed is to let rather than buy, while across London’s boroughs this increases to 37.1%.

The worst served city for rental stock is Newport in Wales where just 13.5% of properties listed are to rent, with Bristol the second lowest and lowest in England at 15.8%, closely followed by Glasgow at 16.4% as the lowest in Scotland.

Belfast ranks as the city with the fourth lowest level of rental stock at 16.8%, with Plymouth completing the top five at just 24.9%.

When it comes to an abundance of rental stock, Aberdeen tops the table with 62.2% of all properties listed on the portals for rent. Newcastle ranks second with 53.5% followed by Oxford (47.3%), London (42.1%) and Southampton (41.2%).

Looking at the capital on a borough level, Bexley ranks as the worst area for rental stock availability with just 15.2% of property listed on the portals available for tenants, not homebuyers.

Havering (16.4%), Bromley (18.7%), Sutton (21.4%) and Croydon (23.7%) also rank amongst the lowest, while Westminster is home to the highest at 62%.

Founder and CEO of Howsy, Calum Brannan, commented:

“This data not only suggests where tenants might struggle to find a place to rent due to an imbalance of rental to sale stock but perhaps also where has seen the largest exodus of buy-to-let landlords due to recent changes in legislation with lettings stock dwindling while the amount of property for sale increases.

It makes sense that in cities dominated by industry, such as Aberdeen or Newcastle, and in those with the least affordable price tags, such as London and Oxford, there is a higher tendency to rent and therefore more rental properties as a proportion of all homes listed.

However, it also highlights that in areas such as Newport, Bristol and Glasgow where rental stock is very low, there is a real opportunity for the professional buy-to-let landlord due to a higher level of tenant demand with a lower investment cost.

Whichever way you look at it, we’re seeing a shift in lifestyle trends towards a greater acceptance of renting on a longer-term basis with the scramble to own our own homes taking a back seat, and so it’s important that the level of rental stock available is cultivated to meet demand across the UK.”

Rental stock (% of properties)
City
Rental stock (%)
Aberdeen
62.2%
Newcastle
53.5%
Oxford
47.3%
London
42.1%
Southampton
41.2%
Leeds
40.2%
Swansea
39.7%
Cardiff
37.7%
Manchester
37.6%
Birmingham
37.1%
Cambridge
36.8%
Sheffield
32.2%
Leicester
31.9%
Bournemouth
30.9%
Edinburgh
27.6%
Nottingham
26.9%
Liverpool
26.7%
Portsmouth
25.5%
Plymouth
24.9%
Belfast
16.8%
Glasgow
16.4%
Bristol
15.8%
Newport
13.5%
Average
33.2%
Rental stock (% of properties)
Location / borough
Rental stock (%)
Westminster
62.0%
Kensington and Chelsea
61.7%
Camden
59.5%
Hammersmith and Fulham
51.5%
City of London
50.2%
Islington
49.9%
Tower Hamlets
47.0%
Brent
42.4%
Haringey
40.9%
Southwark
40.2%
Barnet
40.0%
Wandsworth
39.6%
Hackney
39.6%
Ealing
38.7%
Lambeth
37.4%
Newham
37.1%
Merton
36.3%
Hounslow
36.0%
Harrow
35.6%
Redbridge
35.1%
Richmond upon Thames
34.3%
Greenwich
34.1%
Enfield
32.0%
Barking and Dagenham
30.6%
Lewisham
30.2%
Kingston upon Thames
29.7%
Waltham Forest
28.6%
Hillingdon
27.5%
Croydon
23.7%
Sutton
21.4%
Bromley
18.7%
Havering
16.4%
Bexley
15.2%
Average
37.1%
Inner London
46.2%
Outer London
30.3%

Properganda PR

National and local media coverage for property businesses. Journo quotes delivered in minutes.

You May Also Enjoy

Overseas Property

The most in-demand holiday home destinations

Alicante is the ideal place in the sun when it comes to Brit foreign property dreams Province on Spain’s Eastern coast is the most popular destination for Brits in TV foreign property series Almeria and the Costa Del Sol are in the top three based on analysis of 1,000 episodes of A Place In The…
Read More →
Breaking News

Two Weeks to Go for First Phase of Renters’ Rights Act

With just two weeks until the first phase of the Renters’ Rights Act comes into effect, letting agents across England are being urged to ensure they are fully prepared for the significant operational and compliance changes ahead. From 1 May 2026, the new legislation will introduce wide-ranging reforms to tenancy structures, possession processes and rent…
Read More →
Breaking News

Housing Insight Report: February 2026

The housing market shows steady activity, ongoing challenges with sales agreed rising slightly and stock levels stable, while affordability pressures and longer transaction times continue to strain buyers and sellers. Demand is strong in the rental sector, with significant competition among tenants despite only a modest increase in available properties. Rents have remained relatively stable…
Read More →
Breaking News

London boasts biggest property market gap

UK’s property price gaps exposed: London tops with £838k difference between top and bottom of the market The latest research from eXp UK has revealed the scale of the price divide between the most and least expensive property markets across each region of the UK, with three areas seeing average house price gaps of more…
Read More →
Letting Agent Talk

Questions raised over tenant-agent trust gap

New research from Propoly has found that while over half of tenants describe their letting agent as professional, quick to respond to queries, and efficient in handling maintenance issues, issues still exist, particularly a widespread suspicion that agents are not working in the tenants’ favour. Propoly commissioned a survey of 1,000 UK tenants* to understand…
Read More →
Letting Agent Talk

29 is the age house sharing becomes ‘embarrassing’

but 11% still do it, according to new Nationwide research That equates to 27 million admitting they have felt embarrassed about their living situation With 69% saying living alone is unaffordable, it’s no surprise the average age of those in house shares is 35 From moving home (12%) to living with an ex (10%), as…
Read More →