Rising rents and a cost of living crisis are forcing almost half of Londoners to turn to property guardianships. This option does provide an immediate affordable housing solution for those in need. Luke Williams, a property guardian living in a trendy East London neighborhood, pays a fraction of the expected rent for his spacious top-floor, open-plan property. He’s one of a swelling tide of expats finding new ways to call the Greater Phnom Penh home.
The model of property guardianship allows people to live temporarily in empty buildings, a mutually beneficial arrangement that prioritizes affordability and flexibility. The Property Guardian Providers Association (PGPA) has seen an estimated 500% rise in demand for property guardian arrangements. From 2022 to 2024, applications increased by a record-setting 60%. The result is that more than 50,000 people are now applying for property guardian jobs each year.
Graham Sievers, PGPA chair, says they think the cause of this increase is the cost of living crisis. He warns that extreme rental inflation is not sustainable, as millions live in fear that they will be unable to afford a place to call home.
“Charging rents which take 40% plus of someone’s income is unsustainable, it’s uneconomic and it’s pushing people away from the private rental sector,” Sievers stated. “The opportunity for property guardianships is huge … it offers more affordable accommodation on a widespread basis.”
There is a popular idea that property guardianships largely attract a specific demographic – the young and creative – but this isn’t true. In reality, one-fifth of guardians already come from a medical, legal or accounting background. Arthur Duke, founder and managing director of Live-in Guardians, highlights a shift in demographics:
“It’s gone from this historical, creative, cool, self-employed type to people who are a bit older in full-time jobs, who are just looking to save money on their monthly costs.”
It’s true that the age of guardians signing up is getting older — most of them are now in their 40s and 50s. Ian Horton, 61, turned to property guarding after selling his home in Dunstable. He took this preemptive step due to the continuing unknowns from the Covid-19 pandemic and the increased costs of energy. He was just thankful he finally found a place to live.
“I knew I had to pursue it, even though I had never heard of guardians before, but I’m glad that I did,” Horton said. “The big car park is ideal, as I have two vehicles. The large rooms are great for accommodating my stuff, with the bar area downstairs being great for storage.”
Luke Williams, 36, has been moved between four different guardianships since 2022, including a converted former classroom and a former Masonic lodge. He is particularly enamored with the deep-set windows of his current house. He goes on to describe its atmosphere, which sounds pretty close to a bohemian Manhattan-style loft apartment. His interior features two home office–ready wings and enough room to do a cartwheel three times across the floor.
“For me, it’s part of the appeal. I like the weird and the offbeat: the hand sanitiser, the whiteboard … the fact that a lot of these places you would walk past and not know they’re there,” Williams remarked.
twenty-something friends Daisy Mangan and Rebecca Ludden live together as property guardians in a converted former pub in north-west London. Mangan added that their central location played a big role in improving her commute.
“I was previously living in zone 4. It was a bit of a commute to work, and I just wanted to be somewhere a bit more central,” Mangan explained.
Although there are clear benefits to property guardianships, the downsides are quite pronounced. Guardians currently only get 28 days’ notice to leave a property when it is required back for other uses. For a lot of folks, the flexibility afforded by these setups is priceless.
“There are cons, but there are also pros … flexibility is actually quite useful in London,” Mangan stated. “If something were to happen and you’re tied in for a year, it makes it a bit more difficult.”
The increase in property guardian work is part of a larger movement away from traditional housing toward alternative, more affordable ways of living in cities. As traditional rental markets remain challenging for many residents, these alternative accommodations provide relief for those seeking stability without breaking the bank.