September has been dominated by tenants from overseas, primarily students returning to their studies in London after the summer, or graduates taking up new positions in the City, the mix of which has been fairly even between Europeans and those from Asia.

There is strong demand for furnished one bedroom flats around £525 per week, with the majority of tenants looking to se- cure apartments quickly, usually occupying within two weeks.

Although more stock is avail- able at the upper end of the market, an increasing demand for apartments up to £1500pw is seeing higher value properties let much faster than during the summer months, and demand is very much outstripping supply under £650 per week, keeping prices up.

Its become common to refer to rents on a £per sq.ft. basis in Central London, as has been the case in the sales and commercial property markets for many years. Every property should be viewed and priced on it’s own merit and it’s certainly no exact science, but this way of pricing is now pegging rents to the space rather then just number of bedrooms.

In Covent Garden & Soho, we are now seeing average rents between £50-£80 per sqft depending on the size, location and standard of finish, the greater premiums being achieved for new developments and high quality refurbishments which are always in demand.