Manor Interiors, the expert in build-to-rent furnishing solutions, has revealed which major cities offer the best availability of furnished rental stock across the national market.
Manor Interiors analysed current rental market stock across 24 major cities in Britain, as well as the nation as a whole, looking at what percentage of homes listed offered the convenience of coming fully furnished.
The good news is that the nation’s tenants have a fairly good chance of finding a furnished home, with 50% of all rental homes currently listed on to let offering this popular addition.
However, it’s Aberdeen that ranks as the nation’s furnished rental hotspot, with no less than 89% of all rental properties coming fully furnished.
Scotland also takes the second spot, with Edinburgh also seeing 85% of all rental homes listed as furnished.
Leeds is the best bet for finding a furnished rental home in England with 84% of all rental stock coming furnished, while Newcastle (81%) is the only other city to see furnished rentals account for more than 80% of current market stock.
Swansea ranks top in Wales (78%), with Birmingham (74%), Manchester (73%), Sheffield (72%), Plymouth (71%) and Leicester (71%) also ranking within the top 10.
In contrast, just 22% of rental homes listed on the market in Newport are fully furnished, with Bournemouth (34%) and Bradford (39%) also home to some of the lowest levels of furnished rental homes.
CEO of Manor Interiors, Farhan Malik, commented: “While the rental sector has traditionally acted as a stepping stone to homeownership, we’re now seeing far more people opt to rent as a long term lifestyle choice.
“The convenience and flexibility of renting long term really resonate with the modern-day tenant and we’re starting to see the rental sector evolve to meet these needs, particularly through the build-to-rent sector.
“Furnished homes are just one aspect of this evolution and presenting a stylish, practically furnished home is a sure-fire way to grab the attention of tenants above and beyond your average rental home.
“However, you don’t need to break the bank to achieve this but you also want to refrain from filling your rental home with cheap furniture that is likely to need replacing by the time the next tenant enters the home. Bespoke, high-quality furniture can be purchased for a reasonable price whether you’re fitting out one buy-to-let home, or a hundred units within a build-to-rent development.”
The major UK cities with the highest proportion of furnished rental homes as a percentage of all rental homes listed on the market
| Location | All rentals | Furnished rentals | Furnished % |
| Aberdeen | 832 | 737 | 89% |
| Edinburgh | 1,421 | 1,211 | 85% |
| Leeds | 4,899 | 4,108 | 84% |
| Newcastle | 2,079 | 1,691 | 81% |
| Swansea | 273 | 214 | 78% |
| Birmingham | 4,751 | 3,525 | 74% |
| Manchester | 5,038 | 3,682 | 73% |
| Sheffield | 1,794 | 1,289 | 72% |
| Plymouth | 798 | 569 | 71% |
| Leicester | 2,553 | 1,802 | 71% |
| Portsmouth | 1,359 | 955 | 70% |
| Cardiff | 1,330 | 924 | 69% |
| Oxford | 1,347 | 927 | 69% |
| Liverpool | 2,274 | 1,511 | 66% |
| Nottingham | 2,517 | 1,596 | 63% |
| London | 61,258 | 37,957 | 62% |
| Sunderland | 479 | 286 | 60% |
| Glasgow | 1,386 | 770 | 56% |
| Cambridge | 905 | 487 | 54% |
| Southampton | 1,652 | 853 | 52% |
| Bristol | 1,573 | 674 | 43% |
| Bradford | 393 | 153 | 39% |
| Bournemouth | 617 | 207 | 34% |
| Newport | 156 | 35 | 22% |
| Great Britain | 183,419 | 90,913 | 50% |
| Data sourced from Rightmove – 15/07/2021 |
(Lead image: Max Vakhtbovych / Pexels.com)
