2021 Build to Rent Report - HomeViews Business Hub

2020 provided the UK’s Build to Rent accommodation with its toughest challenge so far.

2020 provided the UK’s Build to Rent accommodation with its toughest challenge so far. The global pandemic triggered successive lockdowns that demanded rapid responses from building managers and operators, as well as swift reassessments from developers, planners and investors.

HomeViews is the review platform for residential developments. We invite residents of new build developments to write a review of and rate their building. Both tenants and owners rate the Facilities, Design, Location, Value, and Building Management, and write a review describing their experience and the location.

The 2021 National Build to Rent report draws upon these unique resident insights to find out how the BTR sector fared during an unprecendented year. This study covers 131 BTR developments, representing 46% of completed stock at the cut-off point for our data sample, and aims to answer the two questions foremost in the minds of BTR leadership:

How did we do? and What can we do better?

Our data suggests that the BTR sector responded swiftly and effectively to residents’ changing needs throughout 2020. Despite minor fluctuations at the outset of each lockdown, BTR resident sentiment remained resolutely positive. Strong community, excellent management, considered design and facilities were key to sustaining the overwhelmingly positive experience enjoyed by BTR residents.

Meanwhile, as in 2019, value was the lowest of our rating categories, suggesting more could be done to ensure residents feel they are getting what they pay for. Home working also significantly changed how residents rate their locations, offering guidance to developers on planning for the future.

* Total occupied build to rent buildings in the UK as of 2020 (BPF/Savills 2020)

2020 provided the UK’s Build to Rent accommodation with its toughest challenge so far.

2020 provided the UK’s Build to Rent accommodation with its toughest challenge so far. The global pandemic triggered successive lockdowns that demanded rapid responses from building managers and operators, as well as swift reassessments from developers, planners and investors.

HomeViews is the review platform for residential developments. We invite residents of new build developments to write a review of and rate their building. Both tenants and owners rate the Facilities, Design, Location, Value, and Building Management, and write a review describing their experience and the location.

The 2021 National Build to Rent report draws upon these unique resident insights to find out how the BTR sector fared during an unprecendented year. This study covers 131 BTR developments, representing 46% of completed stock at the cut-off point for our data sample, and aims to answer the two questions foremost in the minds of BTR leadership:

How did we do? and What can we do better?

Our data suggests that the BTR sector responded swiftly and effectively to residents’ changing needs throughout 2020. Despite minor fluctuations at the outset of each lockdown, BTR resident sentiment remained resolutely positive. Strong community, excellent management, considered design and facilities were key to sustaining the overwhelmingly positive experience enjoyed by BTR residents.

Meanwhile, as in 2019, value was the lowest of our rating categories, suggesting more could be done to ensure residents feel they are getting what they pay for. Home working also significantly changed how residents rate their locations, offering guidance to developers on planning for the future.

* Total occupied build to rent buildings in the UK as of 2020 (BPF/Savills 2020)

Report Collaborators

Report Collaborators

HomeViews is an independent platform that we can use to say to residents, ‘don’t take our word for it – go and take a look at HomeViews. It’s exactly the same with our Housing Association and local authority partners. We can tell them not to take our word for it, but to look at HomeViews.

Darragh Hurley

Managing Director, Mount Anvil

Our incredible scores are a result of the hard work our team puts into supporting each of our residents and helping many through the process of buying their first home. HomeViews has enabled our residents to share their experience of buying with Anthology in their own words and for us to share their stories with prospective customers.

Steve Bangs

CEO, Lifestory

Each Tipi building has its own personality and style and HomeViews gives us resident feedback, ratings and insight into each separate development and how Tipi as a whole is doing. Reports are exceptionally detailed and HomeViews’ marketing tools and support also help us to amplify our overwhelmingly positive reviews and gives prospective residents the confidence to choose the right home for them.

Sarah Tinsley

Marketing Director, Quintain Living

HomeViews is an independent platform that we can use to say to residents, ‘don’t take our word for it – go and take a look at HomeViews. It’s exactly the same with our Housing Association and local authority partners. We can tell them not to take our word for it, but to look at HomeViews.

Darragh Hurley

Managing Director, Mount Anvil

Our incredible scores are a result of the hard work our team puts into supporting each of our residents and helping many through the process of buying their first home. HomeViews has enabled our residents to share their experience of buying with Anthology in their own words and for us to share their stories with prospective customers.

Steve Bangs

CEO, Lifestory

Each Tipi building has its own personality and style and HomeViews gives us resident feedback, ratings and insight into each separate development and how Tipi as a whole is doing. Reports are exceptionally detailed and HomeViews’ marketing tools and support also help us to amplify our overwhelmingly positive reviews and gives prospective residents the confidence to choose the right home for them.

Sarah Tinsley

Marketing Director, Quintain Living

How can we help you?

Every one of the UK’s Top 20 highest-rated BTR communities partners with us to better understand their residents, amplify positive reviews, justify renewals, report to investors and secure new business.

Engage with your residents with a free HomeViews account

Manage your reviews

We believe the best information about a residential development comes from the people living there. Owners and tenants have a lot of useful information to share with their prospective neighbours, not just on the property itself and its locality, but also on the development and building management.

Does it matter how recent reviews are?

We often encourage Partners to regularly collect reviews. This keeps them in the running for our annual Resident Choice Awards, but it’s also something that consumers value.

Research by Power Reviews found that 64% of consumers said they were more likely to buy a product with fewer, more recent reviews than if it had a higher volume of reviews published three or more months ago.

44% of consumers in that same study wanted to ideally be able to find reviews written within the past month. And 62% would not purchase a product if the only reviews available were published a year or more ago.

How many reviews do you need?

Brightlocal data is again the best place to turn to understand the broad spread of opinions shown by consumers. In 2025, 14% of consumers wanted to see 100+ reviews in order to trust a company’s average star rating. However, the majority of consumers said that 20-49 reviews was enough for them to trust an average rating (33%), while 22% said that 50-99 reviews were enough.

How much should you engage with reviews?

Consumers are more consistent on how much they want to see companies responding to reviews. 89% were likely to use a business that repsonded to all reviews, whether positive or negative. Far fewer (55%) were likely to use a business that only responded to negative reviews.

As we stated above, responding to positive and negative reviews clearly demonstrates to prospective residents that you care.