UK in 'dire need' of rental accommodation, says ARLA

A lack of supply of rental stock is the biggest issue facing the UK private rented sector (PRS).

This is the view of the Association of Residential Letting Agents (ARLA), which said the country is in "dire need of good quality rental accommodation".

The organisation conducted a poll at the recent annual lettings industry conference and found that 58 per cent of respondents feel a lack of supply is the biggest challenge currently facing the PRS.

Ian Potter, operations manager at ALRA, said: "The UK is in dire need of good quality rental accommodation to counter the lack of broader housing supply across the country and the PRS needs tangible government support to help achieve this.

"This should be in the shape of incentives for improvements on older properties, assistance for landlords in gaining mortgage finance and regulation to drive unethical letting agents out of the industry."

Mr Potter said government proposals need to be turned into "firm decisions" and called on all political parties to ensure the PRS is factored in to any strategy on national housing.

Get a cheap landlords insurance quote today from Simple Landlords Insurance.