Understanding Build-to-Rent and Its Implications for Letting Agents

Build-to-rent properties in the UK have reached approximately 146,000, growing by about 10,000 each quarter, yet they still represent a small fraction of the over 4 million private rental properties in the market. Major house builders are increasingly keeping new homes for their own rental operations, with only around 20% of new builds becoming available to estate agents, significantly reducing opportunities for them. In London, only 10% of new homes constructed last year were made available in the private rental market, indicating a shift in large builders' strategies towards internal property management. The rising number of new homes may lead to a contraction in the rental market, which could restrict agents' ability to acquire new business, necessitating a shift in their strategies and tools. Agents are encouraged to utilize data and CRM systems effectively to engage with house builders, positioning themselves as valuable partners in managing new rental properties. The emergence of platforms like OpenRent is significantly transforming the rental market, with 20% of private rental properties now listed through them, compared to just 4% twenty-five years ago, indicating a trend of landlords bypassing traditional letting agents. Ric Iannucci-Dawson highlights the need for agents to better leverage data within their CRM systems to enhance prospecting and attract landlords, noting that many are not fully utilizing the available data. Alto's legacy system is seen as a competitive advantage, offering extensive data and business logic that can improve agents' operational efficiency and outreach against larger firms.