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Chinese students are driving demand for rental accommodation in London over the summer as they return to university or take up new places now that Covid restrictions have eased.\u00a0\u00a0 The number of Chinese students arriving in the UK is increasing and now appears to be similar to pre-pandemic levels.<\/p>\n
In some locations such as Wapping<\/a>, Southwark, Colindale<\/a> and East London<\/a>, around 70% of the students enquiring about our rental properties<\/a> are from China.\u00a0 We expect demand from students to remain high until the end of October as supply remains limited.<\/p>\n Demand from Hong Kong professionals relocating to the UK also remains high \u2013 both for renting and buying a property<\/a> – and we\u2019re seeing enquiry levels continue to increase each month, in July alone, enquiries for rental property from Hong Kongers was up 7.3%.<\/p>\n When it comes to renting, most Chinese and Hong Kong students planning to move to the UK are aware that the rental market in London<\/a> is very competitive, with stocks of good rental properties limited. Lettings agents<\/a> across London are short of stock so many students arrive in London and rent an Airbnb or a hotel room while they find accommodation \u2013 this can take several weeks.<\/p>\n To minimise this, many students are carrying out online viewings with us before they leave for the UK, in order to find accommodation.\u00a0 As we fully staffed offices in Hong Kong<\/a> and Shanghai<\/a> it has been relatively easy to carry out virtual viewings for several weeks now, to give applicants plenty of time to find a home.\u00a0 When they find the right property, they\u2019re prepared to pay their holding deposit and sign a tenancy agreement immediately, even if that means the property is vacant for several weeks before they can move in.<\/p>\n Areas like Nine Elms<\/a>, 250 City Road in Shoreditch<\/a>, London Dock Wapping<\/a> (Merino Wharf is the latest building completing now), White City Living<\/a>, Royal Arsenal Woolwich<\/a>, Beaufort Park in Colindale<\/a>, Fulham Reach<\/a> and Sovereign Court in Hammersmith<\/a> are all hugely popular with Chinese students. The priorities tend to include good transport links \u2013 this is key and they prefer to be within half an hour of their university.\u00a0 Also important are a gym and other sports facilities plus fast Wifi.<\/p>\n Hong Kong expats work in a variety of industries, including finance, banking, accounting and \u00a0engineering and typically are aged between 30 and 45.\u00a0 So they\u2019re a mix of singles, couples and many are small families.\u00a0 They like to be near good schools and North-West London tends to be their preferred location so its no surprise that the London Borough of Barnet has the highest number of Chinese\/Hong Kong nationals in the UK.<\/p>\n Other popular developments attracting a lot of interest from our Hong Kong clients are Eastman Village in Harrow<\/a> and Hayes Village<\/a>, which is not far from Heathrow airport. Outside of London, Reading<\/a> and Milton Keynes<\/a> are attracting new interest too as there is more affordable family space to offer here.<\/p>\nRenting a London property in a competitive market<\/h2>\n
Property virtual tours are invaluable now<\/h2>\n
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Virtual tours are invaluable for international students in this frenetic market and can be surprisingly detailed. We are very thorough and show students all the key areas they need to know about, from the kitchen gadgets to communal sports facilities.\u00a0 And because many choose to rent a property in a residential development<\/a>, they will also be able to view the developer\u2019s website, as well as our own location guides which are filmed by our local staff here in London, to give them a feel for the development, the surrounding area and amenities.<\/p>\nStudents\u2019 preferred locations and priorities<\/h2>\n
Demand from Hong Kong BNO visa holders continues to rise<\/h2>\n
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Most Hong Kong BNO<\/a> visa holders rent when they first arrive in London \u2013 typically for 6 \u2013 12 months, before looking to buy. Currently, our sales teams<\/a> are carrying out property searches for a number of Hong Kong clients and typically budgets are good – \u00a3500k to \u00a3800k, and most are cash buyers, having already sold their property in Hong Kong in order to settle in the UK.<\/p>\nHotspots for Hong Kong buyers<\/h2>\n
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In terms of their chosen locations, Colindale remains a hotspot for buyers while Royal Arsenal Riverside in Woolwich is becoming increasing popular too.\u00a0 Both areas offer good value for money as well as excellent transport links.\u00a0 Colindale is a 15-20 minute Tube journey into central London and the City\u2019s finance district on the nearby Northern Line Tube while Royal Arsenal Riverside, another popular Berkeley scheme has its own Elizabeth Line (Crossrail<\/a>) station which has slashed the journey time into central London.\u00a0 Canary Wharf<\/a> can also be reached in seven minutes and Bond Street in 21 minutes so this opens up more places for prospective tenants to consider.<\/p>\nChinese speaking specialists on hand<\/h2>\n
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