In September 2015, Propertymark’s Private Rented Sector Report found a sudden fall in void time to just two weeks.
Since then, the turnaround time on a property has fluctuated between three and five weeks, but Propertymark’s August Private Rented Report saw void times drop again to just two weeks.
The average number of weeks a property is void for has been 3.2 since 2015, 74% of an average calendar month.
This means that currently, instead of losing 74% of a month’s rental income, landlords are only losing 49%.
If a property were marketed for £1,000pcm, the void loss would be £490, rather than £740.
Maxine Fothergill, president of ARLA Propertymark, said: “The decrease in void times won’t come as a surprise to agents as it’s a direct result of the increased demand meaning properties that come back to market are letting incredibly quickly.
“There are a number of things that agents need to have done when a property is void and whilst we aim to be as proactive as possible by pre-booking in checks such as gas and electrical safety, two weeks are sometimes necessary.
“A property may need repairs or redecoration and whilst all properties are cleaned, in current times it’s more important than ever that the property has a thorough clean.
“People are so desperate not to miss out they are trying to secure properties over the phone.
“This is completely against how we work however, so we do tell all applicants that they need to see the property first.
“Sending a video can help to weed out those who would turn the property down on a viewing which saves staff time and helps to keep the turnaround time low.”
