The British Property Federation (BPF) believes that a professional rented sector similar to that of the USA and Germany could house the millions of people unable to get on the housing ladder.

A professional rented sector is where large property managers run domestic lets in a similar fashion to offices, with professional management and economies of scale enabling longer-term lets and a greater level of confidence from consumers.

The BPF thinks that policy makers have long ignored the professional rented sector as a serious solution to the housing crisis, focusing instead on building more homes to buy. Recently, the housing minister outlined the planned review of the rental sector, to be led by Julie Rugg at York University, which was warmly received by all sides.
Rupert Dickinson, chairman of the BPF’s residential committee and chief executive of Grainger Plc, said: “Ministers need to wake up to the reality that no matter how many new homes we build, there will continue to be a huge affordability gap between what people earn and can afford to spend on a house. Institutions can provide the long-term tenancies and levels of service that tenants benefit from abroad, and it’s time that we took the professional rented sector seriously as a viable alternative to ownership.”