Manchester's PRS Household Count To Top 70,000 By 2028

Manchester will have 70,000 private-rented households created in the city by 2028.

That is the prediction of research into the UK’s expanding multifamily residential sector from CBRE, based on Office for National Statistics data.

The CBRE research has identified the UK towns and cities outside London where the demand for rental accommodation will be strongest over the next 10 years, and where the burgeoning build-to-rent sector could grow substantially. To nobody’s surprise, Manchester is in the top 20 research results.

2018 ONS estimates lists 61,964 PRS households in Manchester and the model forecasts an increase of 8,659 by 2028. CBRE's model forecasts an increase of 7,767 to 50,000 in Liverpool.

Surprise entries in the top 20 list are Huddersfield and Bradford. CBRE suggested growth is underpinned by large student populations.

Although Manchester will grow from an already high base, other cities may grow faster from a lower base. Leeds will have 78,000 new private-rented households by 2028, and tops the list in terms of the pace of growth. Bristol and Glasgow will have 60,000 and 70,000 units, respectively. Birmingham will total more than 100,000.

CBRE built a statistical model to analyse the demand drivers of PRS across all local authorities in the UK. The analysis identifies three main factors influencing greater demand for rental accommodation: locations with higher percentage of population aged 25 to 34; high numbers of students; and the relative size of the economy. These three factors have a quantifiable impact on the size of the PRS in a given town or city. 

“With the first wave of build-to-rent development now fully occupied, Manchester is benefiting from a critical mass of people living in the city. With a vibrant leisure offering, it is now a place that people want to live and has become a genuine alternative to London for young professionals,” CBRE North West Head of Residential Tom Sinclair said.

“Manchester is expanding on all sides, with new commercial and residential neighbourhoods emerging across the city. Take Ancoats, a rundown area of surface car parks separated from the city centre by a busy dual carriageway. Now, Ancoats ranks amongst Time Out’s 50 coolest neighbourhoods in the world. The turnaround was completed in late 2019, with the area now home to Manchester’s first Michelin star restaurant for 44 years.”