< img src="https://www.property118.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/What-100-HMO-landlords-are-saying-right-now.png"alt =" "> A simple concern published in the HMO Group on Facebook today triggered a response that will feel familiar to many property managers.
“Anybody else got a lot of empty spaces? Market appears dead.”
Within hours, more than 100 property managers had actually replied.
Some were blunt.
“Worst it’s been in ten years.”
“Spaces taking months to fill.”
“Quality of applicants is dreadful.”
Others were quietly positive.
“Completely occupied.”
“More need than I can manage.”
“Ten queries per space.”
That contrast is what makes this interesting since both groups are describing the exact same market at the very same time.
A market that no longer acts evenly
Reading through the thread, something becomes apparent really rapidly, there is no single story.
In Peterborough, one agent shared information showing a clear swing into oversupply. A few months back, they were tracking approximately one occupant per available space. Now, there are considerably more rooms than applicants. In parts of London and the South East, landlords reported longer void periods and weaker enquiry quality, yet in Hull, Liverpool and pockets of the Midlands, others are still full, some broadening, some even turning occupants away.
That is not a market that has stopped working; it’s a market that has stopped acting predictably.
“Everyone jumped on the HMO bandwagon”
Numerous property managers stated the same thing in different ways; more HMOs, more competitors, more rooms chasing the very same occupants.
It is difficult to argue with that because for years, HMOs have offered strong returns relative to single lets and that naturally attracts capital, conversions follow and brand-new entrants show up. The lag in between financial investment and oversupply can be subtle. Then, all of a sudden, it shows up everywhere; fifty spaces on one estate, lots of listings in the same postal code, and landlords competing not just on price, however on who fills initially. Some factors were already calling it what it is; saturation.
“It’s not the demand, it’s individuals using”
One of the most repeated aggravations in the thread was not an absence of queries, however the nature of them: candidates not turning up, forms not finished, and references not stacking up. That raises a more intriguing question: has need in fact fallen, or has it changed?
There are a few possible explanations being gone over openly by landlords:
- Young specialists staying at home longer
- Remote working lowering the requirement to transfer
- Expense of living pressures limiting price
- Less overseas workers in particular sectors
None of these are brand-new in isolation. What feels various is how they are now combining.
The result is an occupant pool that looks various to the one lots of HMOs were created around 5 or 10 years ago.
Prices, silently under pressure
Some landlords are holding firm, others are currently changing–“We’ve had to drop rents for the first time.”– “Same lease or less than previously.” That is typically the very first real signal of a shift, not headings, not policy statements, jst proprietors making small, useful choices to get spaces filled, and as soon as prices begins to move, even somewhat, behaviour tends to follow.
The migration debate, in property owners’ own words
It would be difficult to overlook the number of comments connecting this to migration. Some proprietors indicated minimized visa numbers while others to changes post-EU exit. Some were more direct in their views, especially around who is and is not inhabiting housing stock. Whether you agree with those views or not, they are plainly affecting how property owners interpret what they are seeing. What is intriguing, however, is that the results are not consistent. Two proprietors in similar areas can describe entirely various experiences, which suggests that while migration might belong to the image, it is unlikely to be the whole explanation.
The property managers who are still full
Among the sound, there are quieter voices worth taking note of.
Landlords who are still totally occupied tend to mention comparable things:
- Area, especially near transportation or employment
- Higher specification, often ensuite rooms
- Cautious renter choice, often prioritising fit over speed
- Holding their nerve instead of panic-filling
One landlord discussed occupants staying for many years. Another said they receive multiple enquiries per space and merely select not to show them unless they meet a particular requirement. It is not that they are in a different market; it is that they are positioned differently within it.
A shift, not a collapse
It is simple, specifically when facing empty rooms, to conclude that “the market is dead”.
The conversation in the HMO Group suggests something more subtle; in some locations there is clear oversupply, in others, need remains strong. In numerous, the concern is not volume, but alignment between item and occupant. At the exact same time, alternative demand is being pointed out more frequently:
- Supported real estate companies
- Council-backed plans
- Longer-term leasing designs
These are not brand-new ideas, however they are being discussed with more seriousness, which usually suggests something is changing.
Over to you
The initial post asked an easy concern but the answers were anything however basic.
Some HMO landlords are experiencing their hardest letting conditions in years, while others are as hectic as ever. Numerous are somewhere in between, attempting to work out whether this is temporary or something more structural. So it is worth asking once again, here:
Are you seeing longer spaces in your HMO’s?
Are candidates changing?
Have you changed rents, or declined to?
Or are you among those proprietors who is still full and questioning what all the difficulty has to do with?
The discussion in the HMO Group is still ongoing.
It would be intriguing to see whether Property118 readers are seeing the very same patterns, or something various entirely.