Country lets set to carry on attracting tenant interest this autumn
Wed 10 Aug 2022
Top quality, country properties located in villages with good onward road links to the employment hubs and wider transport networks of the East Midlands look set to remain in demand this autumn, according to the residential lettings agency of Shouler & Son.
The assertion comes on the back of a summer season of lettings which has seen a steady flow of tenancies secured by the Melton-based agent for landlord clients with high end rural rental properties.
Beyond the prerequisite of location, Shoulers advises that tenants in this rental market bracket are looking for the property to have a garden and, at least, one spare room, beyond the basic number of bedrooms and reception rooms required, for use as a home-based office.
Whereabouts in the property the ‘extra’ room is located is not so important.
It could be as a ‘spare’ reception room or bedroom, a converted garage or shed or, indeed, an outbuilding or summer house in the garden that has either been purpose-built or could easily be re-purposed with minimum input from the tenant.
Period or character features and off-street parking will always add a rental premium in appealing to tenants in this market too.
While there is consensus about what tenants are looking for when it comes to these ‘pretty’ country properties to let, Shoulers confirms that there is no ‘typical’ tenant category.
Dan Barradale, who leads the firm’s residential lettings agency and property management services, explains, “Our two most recent properties in this premium lettings sector saw tenants with very contrasting profiles.
“One was a large property, let to an international couple who live abroad and, at some point in the future, will be relocating to the UK with a view to purchasing a home in the area.
“Another, was a small cottage property let to a businessman who needed, in the main, a Monday to Friday residential base with good access to his employer’s office to fulfil hybrid working arrangements.
“In each of these instances neither property was a primary residence for the tenants but that was no bar in them seeking a premium property to rent.
“This summer has seen a bulge in tenant demand in this lettings sector and it’s something we believe will be sustained in the coming autumn season.
“We are urging landlords with suitable properties to contact us sooner rather than later if they are looking to secure tenants before the end of the year.”
Current Shouler & Son instructions in this slice of the market include: The Old School House, a Grade II Listed, three bedroom property to let in the rural Lincolnshire village of Little Ponton, near Grantham for £1,595 pcm and a four bedroom, barn-style residence, Shepherd’s Rest in Sproxton, Vale of Belvoir, also for £1,595 pcm.
For more information on The Old School House or Shepherd’s Rest or other properties to let in the villages and market towns of the rural East Midlands, contact Dan Barradale at the residential lettings department of Shouler & Son, d.barradale@shoulers.co.uk, tel 01664 560181 or see Shoulers website.