The Residential Landlords Association has reported that just over quarter of private landlords are looking to sell at least one property over the next year with low levels of confidence in the private rented sector expected over the next 12 months.
Of almost 2,500 landlords who responded to the latest RLA survey, just over 25% said that they were planning to sell at least one property over the next year, the highest proportion since the RLA started asking this question regularly in 2016.
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The same survey revealed that 23% of landlords reported an increase in the demand for rental property over the previous three months, with 57% reporting it to be stable.
The results come following the publication of Government data earlier this year which found that that 10 per cent of private landlords representing 18 per cent of tenancies plan to decrease the number of properties they rent out, whilst five per cent of landlords, representing 5 per cent of tenancies plan to sell all of their properties.
The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors has warned that the imbalance between supply and demand in the rental market is expected to see rent increases averaging three per cent per annum over the next five years.
Amidst the rental home supply crisis that tenants now face, the RLA argues that it is vital that landlords retain confidence to provide the homes to rent that are desperately needed. This means ensuring that new regulations governing how landlords can regain possession of their properties in legitimate circumstances are fair and effective both for landlords and the tenants.
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David Smith, policy director for the Residential Landlords Association said, “All the talk of longer tenancies will mean nothing if the homes to rent on not there in the first place.
The Government’s tax increases on the sector are already making it difficult for tenants to find a place to live, with many landlords not renewing tenancies. If rushed and not thought through, planned changes to the way landlords can repossess properties risk making the situation even worse.
Action is needed to stimulate supply with pro-growth taxation and a process for repossessing homes that is fair to all.”
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