Big rise in pensioner buy-to-let landlords

Wednesday 11th July 2012

There has been a steep rise in landlords aged 65-plus, suggesting that cash-strapped pensioners are using property to help fund their retirements.

Insurers Simply Business looked at more than 300,000 landlord insurance quotes and found a rise in the number of retiree landlords – up 11% so far this year on last, and up 33% since 2009.

There has been a particular increase in female pensioners renting a property, with an increase of 12% in 2012 and 43% since 2009.
 
Some are letting out their old homes. With the housing market depressed and homes difficult to sell, many retirees now opt to keep their property and let it out when downsizing or moving in with family.
 
Significantly, most pensioner landlords (93%) own just one rental property. Research also shows that most retiree age landlords (74%) have been letting out a property for more than three years.

By contrast, the number of landlords aged 18 to 25 has decreased by 38% over the past three years.
 
Jason Stockwood, CEO of Simply Business, said: “In today’s economic climate, choosing to rent out your property rather than sell immediately has been a good option for many when looking to move, and with the current squeeze on pensions this is proving a good source of income for people of retirement age.
 
“Buy-to-let can be a tough marketplace to enter, but there is a great deal of support available for those looking to take the plunge, and we provide specialist insurance for people of all ages to start and even grow their portfolios.

“As a result, many who started out as so-called accidental landlords have chosen to remain in the market for the longer term and to continue reaping the financial benefits.”