The European Rental Association (ERA) estimates that due to Covid-19, rental income will drop by 10.4% in 2020 as a whole, followed by a 4.8% rebound in 2021.
ERA's newly released "Market Report 2020" also provides the latest data on the performance of the rental market in 2019, with an estimated growth rate of 4.1% in the 15 countries covered, equivalent to 27.7 billion euros. These 15 companies all achieved growth last year, which is already the second year.
The report pointed out that the impact of the epidemic varies from region to region. Nordic countries have no blockades and almost no site closures. Its performance is different from that of Southern Europe and the United Kingdom, which face severe blockades and interruptions in activities. Britain is further affected by the uncertainty of the Brexit negotiations.
ERA emphasized that the situation in 2020 is very severe, affecting the forecast for 2021. It said that it expects a substantial decrease this year, but expects a substantial increase in the short-term and medium-to-long term.
Estimates and forecasts are based on assumptions made at the end of September, for example, there will be no further blockades across Europe except for local and temporary restrictions. The forecast does not consider the development of vaccines.
For 2019, although economic growth is recorded in every country, some markets (France, Belgium and Sweden) are slowing down, while others are reporting strong growth, especially Germany, Poland and Italy.
Among the countries analyzed, the total rental turnover of these 15 countries exceeds 27.7 billion euros. This accounts for more than 95% of total rental turnover in the 28 EU countries, the European Free Trade Area countries and the UK.
