Landlords in the south of England are more optimistic than those in the rest of the country, according to new polling from Landbay.
The research, based on the opinions of landlords operating approximately 2,000 properties, found that buy-to-let (BTL) landlords predominantly operating in the south of England are more confident than those in the Midlands or the north of the country. Almost a quarter (23%) of landlords in the south say they are positive about the future, compared to 17% in the Midlands and 13% in the north.
In the north, 44% of landlords said they felt negative about their prospects, compared to 39% in the south and 42% in the Midlands.
Rob Stanton, sales and distribution director at Landbay, said: “Given the current economic climate and the state of play when it comes to taxation and future regulation, landlords in the north and Midlands can be forgiven for not feeling more upbeat about their prospects.”
Landlords who are predominantly operating via Ltd company structures are more confident than those operating as individuals – with only 35% of those borrowing as Ltd companies saying they feel negative about their BTL business’s prospects, compared to 56% of those borrowing as individuals.
Landlords with between 4 and 10 properties were the most confident with 31% saying they felt positive about the future. Landlords with larger portfolios (more than 20 properties) were the least confident with 55% saying they felt negative about the future of their BTL business.
One landlord in the south-east, predominantly operating via Ltd Companies said: “Unless the government unleashes a 1960s-type building boom and build a massive number of council houses, the pressure of limited available rental stock versus the demand from young tenants will ensure rents are buoyant and provide a good business for buy-to-let landlords.”
Speaking to Landbay, another landlord, operating in the West Midlands, said: “The future is going to be tough. While there is a demand, there are headwinds and challenges facing landlords.”
Roughly two in every five landlords (39%) told Landbay they feel neutral about the future of their business. Nationally, while only 18% landlords say they feel positive, 42% report feeling negative about the future.
Across the country, only 0.75% of the landlords polled by Landbay said they were selling all of their properties. And, of those who described themselves as neutral, just 25% said they were considering selling off part of their portfolios (none were considering selling up entirely) and only 47% ruled out growing their portfolios.
Rob Stanton said: “Landlords have seen some huge changes in the BTL market – increases in stamp duty and the Renters’ Rights Bill being two very significant ones – and may have been unsettled by escalating geopolitical tensions recently, too. That’s all hit sentiment. While there are certainly some headwinds to contend with, it is reassuring to know so few of them are choosing to cut and run entirely. There are forty landlords looking to expand their properties for every one landlord planning to chuck in their portfolios entirely. Property remains a reliable investment vehicle. Not only does demand continue to outstrip supply, rental yields are strong. Add in a broad range of products that can support landlords in a wide variety of situations, and I’d argue that, even with headwinds, there is reason to be optimistic about building, maintaining and expanding a rental portfolio.”
