Two-thirds of landlords planning to expand portfolio

Two thirds of landlords plan to buy at least one further property in the next six months, according to Mortgages for Business. 

This is compared to 55% recorded in November, the last time the firm carried out a Property Investor Survey. 

Just 8% of landlords currently plan to sell any property, according to the survey, while 27% do not intend to either grow or reduce the size of their property portfolio over the next six months. 

This contrasts with data from ARLA, also released this week, which suggested that agents were seeing more landlords selling their properties.

“Landlords are better capitalised and now more confident about reinvesting. A strong rental market is being driven by tenants moving to make the most of job opportunities, and now gradually starting to earn more too. That new surge of demand is putting more upwards pressure on rents, and landlords are only just beginning to supply more homes to let in response,” comments David Whittaker, managing director at Mortgages for Business.

He adds that the Conservatives’ majority victory in the general election will also encourage the UK’s landlords as house prices increase and the threat of Labour’s proposed ‘damaging regulation’ has been avoided for at least the next five years. 

Mortgages for Business’ research also found that only 30% of landlords say mortgage lenders are doing enough to support property investors. 

The firm says that landlords’ most common demand for lenders is to ease lending criteria, with 57% of those surveyed saying lenders should be less rigid in their selection of borrowers. 

“It is hard to prove who the better borrower is: a professional landlord with three properties but a minimal external income, or a part-time landlord with one investment property but a well-paid job,” adds Whittaker. “Lenders are still adapting and improving their models for these things. But property investors are understandably annoyed when their personal circumstances aren’t taken into account, and good lenders won’t want to avoid too many borrowers unnecessarily.”