The news that John Lewis was “moving in” to build to rent (BTR) has attracted much interest. For a time, the news was trending as one of the most popular articles on the BBC News website. However, Emanuele Midolo’s “guide” (£) to BTR in the Sunday Times is a reminder of perhaps one key obstacle that the industry continues to grapple with in the UK - is BTR really understood?

There is one quote in the guide that, arguably, really hits the nail on the head. As Tony Brooks, managing director of Moda, says: “If the customer has a really good time, our business model works. If the customer has a crappy time, they’re going to walk”. It is perhaps a far cry from the renting experience of many...