More landlords have purchased properties than sold them over the past year according to new research published today.
Whilst 13 per cent of those questioned said they had sold rental properties over the previous 12 months, 19 per cent said they had bought property.
The average number of properties sold and bought per landlord was about equal at two, pointing to a modest net increase in the supply of homes to rent.
The data comes from a representative survey of over 2,000 private landlords in England carried out in April and May by the TDS Charitable Foundation, which works to advance education about housing rights and obligations in the private rented sector.
The research finds that landlords with larger portfolios were more likely to have sold property in the past 12 months. 44 per cent of those with ten or more properties sold at least one, compared to 13 per cent of those with two to four properties and 6 per cent of those with one property.
Among all those who had sold properties over the past year, 44 per cent said their property was sold to an owner occupier and 27 per cent said it was sold to another private landlord. 11 per cent said it had been sold to an affordable housing provider and eight per said their property had ended up in the short term lets market. Seven per cent of those landlords who had sold property did not know where the homes had ended up.
For landlords saying they had sold properties over the previous 12 months, 33 per cent cited concerns about planned regulatory changes in the planned Renters’ Rights Bill as a major reason for selling, followed by 28 per cent citing the impact of tax changes such as additional stamp duty paid on the purchase of properties to rent.
Looking ahead to the next 12 months, whilst 46 per cent of landlords said they plan to make no changes to the number of properties they let, 24 per cent said they are actively looking to sell properties, with 19 per cent saying they were looking to purchase new properties.
Dr Jennifer Harris, Head of Policy and Research at TDS Group said:
“Whilst today’s research points to more landlords purchasing rather than selling properties over the past year, demand for rental housing continues to outstrip supply, with 17 households chasing every home to rent according to Rightmove.
“As the Government plans to reform the private rented sector, it needs urgently to focus on boosting the choice renters have when it comes to where to live. Without this, tenants will struggle holding rogue and criminal landlords to account given the shortage of alternative housing to move to.”
About the research
The Voice of the Landlord Survey is a new national survey run the TDS Charitable Foundation, which examines landlords’ experiences of letting properties in the English private rented sector. It is a continuous survey that will be conducted annually with a sample of over 2,000 landlords. The survey complements the Foundation’s regular Voice of the Tenant Survey.
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