Are We on the Brink of a Mass Landlord Exodus?

Landlords say that the private rental sector (PRS) is not what it once was. A steady barrage of regulatory reforms over the years has made managing a buy-to-let (BTL) portfolio more complex, time consuming and expensive.

Last year alone, the government introduced changes to buy-to-let mortgage tax relief and further stamp duty reform, as well as amends to Section 21 regarding unfair evictions and the introduction of the Tenant Fees Act.

It could be argued that the imbalance between supply and demand in the housing market has resulted in issues for first-time buyers, so the government has stepped in to curtail BTL investors purchasing excessive amounts of property. 

It is also worth remembering that BTL is STILL the most profitable form of investment. 

Accumulate Capital recently surveyed more than 750 landlords, all of whom own three or more properties, and they came up with some alarming results.

Over half (53%), say they would not have purchased property in the first place if they had known about the then upcoming regulatory changes. 

37% plan to sell one or more of their properties this year, and around two thirds of those prospective sellers say it is a direct result of increased regulation and taxes. 

Paul Howell, CEO of Accumulate Capital Says: 

“If the government wants to rebalance supply and demand in the property market – which they need to do in order to improve housing affordability and availability – its top priority should be ensuring more residential developments are being built across the UK. That’s why I am keen to see new measures being introduced to make sure the UK’s property developers are provided the support they need to fund and construct more new-build homes.

“The upcoming Budget on 11 March will reveal if the new government is going to change its approach. At the very least, I encourage them to take a step back and examine how current regulatory reforms are affecting landlords and the BTL market more broadly. Hopefully they will see that targeting landlords will not resolve some of the pressing challenges currently facing the real estate market.”