Professionals in the real estate industry are not overly upbeat about the sector's prospects, a new survey has found. The Savills Residential Sentiment Survey described the marketplace as "fragile", with a number of factors weighing on confidence. Top of the list among those questioned is the lack of available finance for house purchases, with director of the company's residential research team Yolande Barnes noting that there seems to be "a general expectation that property will become more equity reliant in the future".
One area where sentiment is more buoyant is the private rented sector (PRS), with 63 per cent of those questioned predicting an increase in the number of residential property funds operating in the market over the coming year. Ms Barnes added that the industry is likely to see "significant change", with new innovations being introduced in the coming months. Managing director of HomeLet John Boyle commented earlier this month that an increasing number of people in the UK are going to rely on the PRS for their accommodation, as people struggle to get on the housing ladder. He noted that it is an "affordable, stable and long-term alternative" to purchasing a property.