Landlord divide widens: More than a third of older property owners plan to shrink or quit

The private rented sector is dividing along generational lines, with younger and larger landlords planning to expand while older landlords lose confidence and prepare to sell, according to new research from August, the property management platform for UK landlords.

The August Landlord Survey 2026, completed by 276 UK landlords in September, asked landlords to rate their confidence in being a landlord in the UK over the next five years on a scale of 0 to 10.

The average was 7.1, with 63% scoring 7 or above and 14% scoring 4 or below. But the average hides a sharp split. Landlords aged 35 to 44 scored 7.9. Landlords aged 65 or over scored 4.7, the lowest of any group by a wide margin.

Plans follow the same pattern. A third of landlords (34%) intend to increase the number of properties they own over the next two years, 29% will stay the same, 20% plan to reduce, and 9% plan to sell everything. Among landlords with twenty or more properties, 54% plan to grow.

Among the over-65s, 35% plan to shrink or exit, and only 48% say they will re-let the next property that falls vacant, against 69% of landlords overall.

Portfolio structure matters as much as age. Landlords who hold property personally are seven times more likely to be selling up entirely (14%) than those using a limited company (2%). Thirty per cent of respondents hold all their property through a company, and a further 25% use a mix, compared with 6% letting through a company in the government’s English Private Landlord Survey 2024. The share planning to grow (34%) is also far higher than the 7% the government found in 2024, which reflects a sample that leans towards larger and incorporated landlords.

Tax is the most cited influence on landlords’ plans (40%), ahead of mortgage costs (31%), legislation (29%) and rental demand (27%). Among those planning to sell or reduce, legislation (41%) and tax (40%) lead. Among those planning to grow, rental demand (32%), house price expectations (32%) and, notably, tax (30%) are the main drivers, suggesting that for some landlords tax is a reason to restructure and expand rather than retreat. Fieldwork closed in September, before last week’s Autumn Budget added a further two percentage points to property income tax rates from April 2027.

Asked for their single biggest worry over the next twelve months, a quarter (26%) chose further legislation, 19% void periods, 19% mortgage rates and 13% tax. More than half of the over-65s (55%) named legislation, while the 35 to 44s were most worried about mortgage rates (35%).

“Tax is the factor landlords cite most, but it doesn’t push them all the same way,” said Richard Samuel, Chief Executive of August. “For landlords who are selling, it’s one more reason to go. For three in ten of those planning to grow, it’s part of the reason they’re expanding, often by changing how they hold their property. Last week’s Budget raised tax on rental income again, so that split is likely to widen, and knowing your numbers matters more than ever.”

“The split by age reflects the conversations we’re having with members across the region,” said Vicki Hextall, Area Manager at East Midlands Property Owners (EMPO). “Many older landlords who built up a property or two for their retirement are tired of constant change and are weighing up whether to sell, while younger landlords, often operating through limited companies, are still looking to grow. Both need clear, practical guidance. For those staying, it’s about running their portfolio as a business. For those that might be thinking about leaving, it’s about exiting properly and on their own terms.”