Good news for buy to let as mortgage choice bounces back

There’s good news for the buy to let sector today as an independent mortgage market monitor reports a 15-month high in the number of products aimed at the sector.

Moneyfacts says that at 2,709 products, July sees the highest number of options on offer in the buy to let sector since March 2020.

In the past year alone some 971 products have been added, making up ground after availability was limited when swathes of products were withdrawn following the onset of the pandemic.

The average overall two and five-year fixed BTL rates have fallen when compared to July 2019 – good news for those looking to remortgage – however year-on-year both the two- and five-year fixed average rates for all LTVs are in fact up 0.37 and 0.31 per cent respectively.

Investors with 40 per cent equity or deposit will find that even though their level of product choice is lower than it was this time last year, they are amongst those who might be able to secure a competitive new deal as the average two- and five-year fixed rates in this bracket both remain 0.03 per cent lower year-on-year.

Eleanor Williams, Moneyfacts’ finance expert, says:  “At 2,709 the number of products available to investors is far more than the choice [investors] were faced with this time last year, but perhaps even more interesting is that there are 365 deals more available now than we recorded in July 2019, demonstrating the strength and resilience of this sector in the aftermath of an unprecedented 18-months.

“The demand for buy to let could well remain strong in the months to come as rental demand is prevalent, indicated by recent research from Propertymark’s Private Rented Sector report, May saw a record-breaking number of new prospective tenants registered. 

“Whether now is the right time to invest in property may also come down to the desire to earn a decent income. Indeed, research from Nottingham Building Society revealed that 61 per cent of landlords surveyed felt property was a better investment due to low interest rates for savings – and this coupled with high demand for rental accommodation could sway new investors to dive into the buy to let sector.

“There could still be some understandable hesitation from prospective landlords with some existing investors who could even be considering downsizing their portfolio depending on the pandemic’s impact. However, we are beginning to see some improvements in average rates in certain loan-to-value brackets on a month-on-month basis.”