The UK’s relocation prospects still sparkle
With a highly skilled workforce, flexible labour laws, a position as third in the world for attracting global talent and an approximate 75% employment rate, against a European average of 68.5%, the UK continues to be an attractive destination for global companies and international professionals.
Even as a nation grappling with a degree of internal political and financial turmoil, our status as a global business hub and investment safe haven remains intact. Far from deterring multinational businesses from relocating staff to the UK, we are seeing start-ups gain momentum, new openings created, and established companies open additional offices.
New offices, new recruitment opportunities
When it comes to the latter, the latest is TikTok. The rapidly expanding video-sharing platform is negotiating to open a secondary office in London to complement its existing headquarters. TikTok has expressed a desire to rent an additional 11-story, 134,000-square-foot building in London’s Farringdon business district.
In similar news, global investment bank Goldman Sachs has reached a long-term lease agreement for a 110,000-square-foot permanent office space at One Centenary Way in Birmingham, which is part of the new £1.2 billion Paradise Birmingham project.
Not every new position created by expansion and growth will be filled by a UK national. The exciting opportunities will naturally draw fresh talent from around the world, while many roles will be filled by relocating professionals moving from within an existing international employment framework.
So, who is attracted to our small but mighty island? The Government’s own statistics, organised under the heading ‘Why do people come to the UK?’ and updated on 23rd September 2022, casts light on where professional relocators are coming from.
Heading for our shores from afar
The top 3 nationals granted ‘Skilled Worker’ visas (including ‘Senior or Specialist Worker, Global Business Mobility) are Indian nationals, accounting for 39% (34,186), United States nationals with 6% (5,637) and South African nationals with 4% (3,578).
Outside of the UK Government’s official figures, the Financial Times reports that a net 170,000 Hong Kong residents have left the former British territory so far in 2022. Many of those will have been bound for the UK, thanks to the introduction of the UK Government’s BNO emigration initiative. The successful scheme is expected to expand at the end of November 2022, allowing adults born after Hong Kong’s handover to China on 1st July 1997 – and who have at least one parent as a BNO passport holder – to settle in the UK.
Advantages of relocating to the UK
The saying ‘one man’s loss is another man’s gain’ is very apt in relation to the UK’s private rental market. International currency advantages against the weak Pound are negating the rises in UK rental values.
For context, the average rental price for a new tenancy in the UK was £1,159 per calendar month in September – up by 1.4% from last month – according to the latest HomeLet Rental Index. Year on year, UK rents have risen 9.2% in the last 12 months.
In contrast, Klippa Relocation’s Rental Market State of Play report for September 2022 found sterling’s dramatic slide has made it cheaper for international relocators to rent in the country. In London, for example, a one-bedroom city centre apartment was €73.99 a month cheaper to rent in September when compared to the price in August, and when using the Euro as the predominant currency.
Rental demand outweighs supply
While there is good news in the form of cheaper rents for many international relocators while the Pound is weak, there is a continuing supply and demand imbalance that’s shaping the relocation process. The latest research from Propertymark, released at the end of October 2022, showed the number of new tenants registered at each of its members’ branches reached a new peak of 147 in September. In a worrying counter trend, the number of properties available to rent had not risen in the last four months.
In London, the situation has been more pronounced. Agent Chestertons says between July 2021 and July 2022, the number of rental homes on the market dropped by 38%, while its agents recorded a 60% increase in renters looking for homes in the same period.
Miss a beat and miss out
Speed is of the essence when renting a property in the UK as a delay of even 24 hours can be enough to scupper a relocation plan. The Guardian recently carried a story telling of ‘bidding wars, cash up-front, offers way over the monthly rent and 15 people ahead in the viewing queue’, summing up how competitive the rental market currently is.
Being able to see a property promptly is of paramount importance but almost impossible when the tenant is relocating from overseas. Viewber is already an essential service for international investors who are looking to buy UK property and now we are extending our services to international HR departments and relocation professionals who need to place candidates in the UK.
View any rental property on your behalf
We offer a nationwide ‘boots on the ground’ service, powered by a network of Viewbers who are in the local vicinity of every property to rent in the UK. With very little notice, a Viewber can visit a property on your behalf, reporting on its condition, size and even the location/neighbourhood it is in.
Our reports are backed up with photographic and video evidence, and you can even book a live stream walk around, if necessary. A Viewber can also perform the necessary Right to Rent checks on any incoming tenants, which can make the relocation process a simpler task.
Viewber’s services allow HR departments and relocation professionals to make quick, informed decisions in an ultra-competitive UK rental market. Book a Viewber to visit one or several properties, and you’ll receive digital property reports in a timely fashion.
