According to conventional British wisdom, renting is something you do when you can’t afford to buy a house. While that’s still true of the majority of London renters, there is another group – and they’re growing.

Some are international executives coming here to work for a year or two. There are wealthy overseas students, too, particularly from China where applications to UK universities increased by 30 per cent last year. In addition, affluent UK commuters are choosing to rent instead of buy their pied-a-terres because of the 3 per cent-plus stamp duty penalty on second homes imposed three years ago.

Whatever their reasons, they are contributing to a spike in renting in the capital – as well as creating a market for luxury rental homes.

Property agent JLL says it saw a huge 36.7 per cent increase in people who enquired about renting a property between January and August compared to the same period in 2018. Meanwhile Savills says it saw a 15 per cent year-on-year rise in renters in July and August alone, and that corporate lets are up 10 per cent in the year to date.

The Atlas building penthouse is on the market for rent at £3,500 per week. Image: Angel O’Donnell

“There’s certainly been no sign of companies slowing down their staff re-locations,” says Matthew Salvidge, head of Savills Corporate Services. “In industries like tech, major organisations are bringing people over at junior level right through to executive.”

But while a few years ago companies might have paid to relocate whole families, the preferred option now is to rent a pied-a-terre for the executive and allow regular trips home.

Top-notch facilities

International professionals and students are both keen on high-end, new-build flats. “They tend to like new developments that offer porters and gyms and all those extra facilities,” says JLL’s Lucy Morton.

At the Atlas Building in the City, which has a gym, spa, pool and cinema, JLL let 40 apartments off-plan – something that is almost unheard of in the rental market. It has also just launched the 38th-floor penthouse, designed by Angel O’Donnell, to the market for £3,500 a week.

The Atlas penthouse. Image: Angel O’Donnell

Lifestyle is also important for James Palmer, who works for a bank in Canary Wharf, rents a newly refurbished two-bed penthouse on Albemarle Street in Mayfair and joins his family in Somerset for weekends – although for him that means “walking everywhere” and being near parks and museums for when his kids visit.

He says the decision to rent rather than buy was “100 per cent down to stamp duty,” which would equate to about three years’ worth of rent. “When you combine that with the inherent flexibility of renting, it’s a no-brainer,” he adds.

Brexit and stamp duty prompting ‘young super rich’ to rent

This week, Wetherell rented a flat in Clarges, Mayfair (pictured top) to a “millennial tenant” for £30,000 per month, noting that the “young super-rich” are opting to rent due to Brexit and stamp duty.

But it’s not all about the City and West End. JLL’s Stratford office has seen a 47 per cent rise in rentals, and this tallies with data from property platform Houzen, which says lots of high-end renters are looking East.

“Renters are delighting in how much this vibrant part of London has to offer. Demand for top-notch rentals with a range of added extras is strong and sustained,” says Rob Csercse, head of East London sales.

The Clarges Mayfair apartment, rented for £30,000 per month

Houzen says high-end apartments in Canary Wharf are now sought after by Chinese students “more than any other demographic,” particularly in buildings like Greystar’s Ostro Tower which offers renters personal training and pet sitting.

Aldgate, it says, is appealing to “professionals working in the City and students from Asia,” thanks to rental schemes like MyLo’s Aldgate Place which offers residents a 24/7 concierge, gym and winter gardens. The penthouse rents for £1,788 per week. Csercse says East End penthouses are likely to be filled by “YouTubers and esports players” rather than City boys.

If the number of high-end tenants keeps growing, the renter stereotype could be in for quite a challenge.