Confidence among buy-to-let landlords remains high despite the threat of new taxes and tough regulatory changes.
The latest survey from Paragon Mortgages shows that rental yields are growing modestly while tenant demand for buy-to-let property remains consistently high.
Landlords remain optimistic despite Chancellor George Osborne’s tax crackdown, rent control threats from Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour Party, and warnings that new legislation is tipping the balance of power against landlords
Paragon’s latest private rented sector trends report is based on data collected throughout the third quarter.
John Heron, director of Paragon Mortgages, said the report marked a continuation of recent positive trends. “Yields are growing modestly and tenant demand remains consistent.”
Heron added: “Despite regulatory and taxation changes on the horizon, the expectation amongst landlords is for the picture to remain the same over the coming year.”
More than half of those landlords surveyed by the lender reported steady tenant demand over the quarter, while 40% said tenant demand was either ‘growing’ or ‘booming’.
The percentage of respondents expecting tenant demand to remain stable over the coming 12 months, or grow, increased from 85% to 89%.
The data also showed that average yields have grown over the past three months from 6.3% to 6.4, in line with steady growth seen throughout 2015.
The proportion of landlords who intend to buy over the next 12 months has increased from 16.8% to 18.4%.