Tenants seeking shared accommodation across Britain are increasingly having to plan their moves well in advance, new analysis from HMO management platform COHO reveals.
Of more than 13,000 listings surveyed, only 58.6% of rooms are available for immediate occupancy, while 27% will not become vacant for one to three months, and a further 10% are more than three months away.
COHO’s city-by-city breakdown shows stark regional disparities. In Brighton, just 11% of current listings can be moved into at once, with only 32.7% available within a month.
Nottingham faces a similar squeeze: only 28.1 per cent of rooms are ready now, and 40 per cent remain off the market for at least one to three months. Newcastle (46.7%) and Bristol (49.6%) also report under-half immediate availability.
GREATER CHOICE
By contrast, tenants in Birmingham enjoy far greater choice: 85.7% of shared homes are vacant now. Sheffield and Glasgow follow at 74.5% and 72.2% immediate availability respectively.
The data suggest that while some cities offer a fast turnaround on lettings, others compel tenants to secure accommodation long before their desired move-in date.
COHO Founder and Chief Executive Vann Vogstad says: “Navigating the shared living market can occasionally feel a bit overwhelming. Trying to find a home in the right area can be tricky enough, but finding one whose availability aligns with your requirements can be a further challenge.
“We will always recommend that people give themselves a decent amount of time to find the right home for their next move, but also appreciate that this luxury isn’t always possible when circumstances change unexpectedly or other life factors demand an immediate relocation.
“The traditional ways of finding shared living properties can make it difficult to quickly know whether you’re going to have compatibility with housemates – requiring you to find time to meet them face to face at least once – but COHO’s revolutionary platform means you can have a good idea of potential compatibility as easily as you can see the asking price.
“So instead of your time constraints forcing you to take a punt and hope for the best, you can instantly see the ages, interests, and lifestyles of the people already living in the property.”
