Just over a third of landlords plan to sell at least some or all their buy-to-let properties, the latest landlord survey from Landbay has revealed.
This is up from 29% in the previous survey, with the biggest reason for doing so being landlord taxation – selected by more than half of those looking to dispose of properties. This is an increase from just over a third in the previous study.
Just under half – 46% – intended to sell due to worries about evicting difficult tenants, in light of plans as part of the Renters’ Rights Bill. Fluctuations in mortgage rates is less of concern, but still listed by more than a third (39%) of landlords – down from 48% previously.
Just 1% of those questioned said they intend to sell all of their properties. Less than two-in-ten landlords are still undecided and don’t know what their plans are.
The findings form part of Landbay’s latest survey which questions existing landlords on a variety of topics to determine their attitude and intentions. The survey uncovered the key factors facing landlords and their thoughts on government policy, upcoming regulation and the future of the buy-to-let market.
While a high number of landlords plan to reduce the size of their buy-to-let portfolios, Rob Stanton, sales and distribution director at Landbay, was keen to point out that almost half of buy-to-let landlords have no intention of selling any properties in the next 12 months, according to the survey.
Some 47% of landlords said they have no interest in selling any properties. Among those, the biggest intention came from landlords with 4-10 rental properties (36%), closely followed by those with portfolios of 11-20 properties (26%). The overwhelming majority owned their rental properties through a limited company (75%).
Stanton said: “As ever, I think landlords and the buy-to-let market in general have once again shown to be more resilient than many people give them credit. Our research has shown that not only are a good proportion of landlords intending to buy this year, but they are also keeping hold of the properties they have. This is hugely encouraging and absolutely critical to the overall health and wellbeing of the PRS and wider UK housing market.”
