Rokstone: Prime London rents set to rise in 2022

Rokstone: Prime London rents set to rise in 2022

14/12/2021 by Rokstone

The number of prospective tenants in the Prime Central London lettings market has increased by 30% since June 2021, viewings have increased by 70%, and PCL rental values have risen by 1% above pre-pandemic levels, resulting in a 40% reduction in rental supply: these are the key findings of the latest lettings survey by leading boutique estate agent Rokstone.

Rokstone’s 2021 Central London lettings survey looked at viewings and deals data from its own lettings department data, alongside supporting information from LONRES and local market intelligence. Prime London Rental is a property being let for above £2,500 per week and a Super-Prime Rental is a property being let for over £5,000 per week.



Grosvenor Square in Mayfair, one of the settings hot spots highlighted by Rokstone.

The top five “lettings hot-spot” locations in Central London in terms of volume of applicants and deals in rank order are Marylebone, followed by Belgravia, then Notting Hill, Chelsea and Mayfair. The most popular lettings instructions can command anything from 12-18 applicants per property with the best properties able to let in anything between 24-48 hours, with the average listing letting within several weeks.



Chiltern Place by PLP Architecture in Marylebone. Rental apartments from Rokstone.

The most popular rental properties are turn-key dressed houses with outdoor space, which normally rent for £5,000 to £7,500 per week, followed by lateral apartments ranging in size from 3,000 to 5,000 sq ft, with outside balconies or terraces, which rent for £5,000 to £10,000 per week. The strongest demand is for properties that are either brand new or recently refurbished and include a concierge and parking.

The key tenants in the Super-Prime lettings market in Prime Central London are families or couples, with the largest renter groups for properties to let above £5,000 per week being domestic UK tenants, followed by American tenants, then applicants from the United Arab Emirates, India, Russia, France, and Spain in order of country of origin.

The volume of lettings transactions in the Prime London lettings market plummeted by 25-30% during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic. The lettings market stabilised over the first six months of 2021 as the pandemic subsided, the vaccine was rolled out, and office work and foreign flights were gradually restored. Since June 2021, the lettings market has strongly rebounded and returned to its pre-COVID-19 buoyant levels.

Looking forward into 2022, Rokstone forecast that Prime Central London rental values will rise by 2-3% with the volume of viewings rising by up to 60% and the volume of deals potentially rising by 10% to 20%, depending on new supply coming to the market.



Super Prime Rentals at Chester Collection designed by Squire and Partners available through Rokstone.

Rokstone highlights that a good example of properties currently in high demand is the recently launched Chester Collection in Belgravia. The four new townhouses designed by Squire & Partners and built by British luxury developer-contractor and fit-out specialist Cheevers Poole, come with either three or four bedrooms and are up to 300m2 (3,230 sq ft) in size. The townhouses are dressed and ready for immediate occupation, available to let at prices starting from £7,250 per week.

See Chester Collection profile for more information.

Lyall Street Grade II listed house

Lyall Street Grade II listed house in Belgravia, London SW1.

A fully furnished four-bedroom house located on Lyall Street in Belgravia provides 3,131 sq ft (290.88m2) of luxurious accommodation complete with a 205 sq ft front garden. Behind the elegant white stucco period façade, the property has been fully refurbished and modernized with a specification interior design by award-winning Hollywood-London designer Nicola Fontanella of Argent Design whose clients have included Guy Ritchie, Madonna and Richard Caring. The Lyall Street house is available on a short let basis for £8,500 per week.

See more details on Lyall Street house profile.



The reception room at the 4-bedroom duplex on Upper Belgrave Street, available to let through Rokstone.

There is also a dressed four-bedroom duplex apartment on Upper Belgrave Street in Belgravia. Located across the raised and lower ground floors of a grand stucco-fronted mansion building, the duplex residence offers 3,288 sq ft (305.46m2) of accommodation opening onto a garden patio on the lower ground floor. The duplex is available to let for £7,500 per week.

See more on Upper Belgrave Street building profile.

Olivia McSweeney, Associate Director & Head of Lettings at Rokstone commented: “The Prime Central London lettings market has returned to its pre-COVID-19 levels of buoyancy with the volume of tenants and deals all significantly up since mid-2021. The most popular properties are either dressed new build or newly refurbished homes which offer outside space. Marylebone and Belgravia are the most popular addresses in PCL for applicants and deals currently.”

Becky Fatemi (photo), Founding Director at Rokstone added: “Listings like the Chester Collection provide tenants with a lettings opportunity unlike any other, the epitome of luxury and elegance. The key issue in the London luxury lettings market at present is lack of stock. Tenants are chasing the same properties which is why rental values have risen slightly this year.

For further London luxury letting information contact Rokstone.

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