Last updated 17:04, Thursday, 06 November 2008

CAN’T sell? What about renting? There’s always hope that the sap will rise in the property market along with the green shoots of spring.

If your house has hung about unsold for a wearying number of weeks, with prospective buyers as rare as hens’ teeth, perhaps the answer could be to let it out?

In Hexham, estate agents at Foster Maddison have appealed to sellers to consider the rental option. Such is the current rush to rent, the Priestpopple agents have let almost every property on their register within the space of 10 days this month.

More people are turning to hired houses because the credit crunch means they can’t get a mortgage.

Dan Maddison, in charge of letting and management at Foster Maddison, said: “Even compared with the situation in the early 1990s this level of demand is quite unprecedented.

“We have always had an enviable client base but even with over 250 properties let through our agency we are rapidly running out of properties to offer to prospective tenants.”

Some customers, unable to find a mortgage and understandably desperate for a roof over their heads, have been trying to persuade sellers to rent them their houses.

Letting department manager at Foster Maddison, Niki Harris, said: “We have had offers for properties which are on the market for sale but not actually available to rent.

“I suspect that some customers are favouring the ‘try before you buy’ option and we had difficulty explaining to one party that, even with an offer of rent close to £5,000 per month, the house was only available for sale.

“We are encouraging landlords, and the owners of houses for sale which are not attracting offers, to contact us urgently.

“This is the ideal time to let your property for, say, six months with the option to return to the sales market at a more opportune time in the spring.”