Over the next 12 months 15% of landlords surveyed said they expected to purchase a new buy-to-let property.
Landlords were also asked to determine what they considered to be the most important factors for their business over the coming year. The majority (83%) said the most relevant factor was rental demand, 69% said rent levels and 46% said tenant arrears.
Other key facts from the survey include:
• Landlords’ average portfolio size in Q4 was 12.7 properties - this is expected to increase to an average of 13.2 in the next 12 months
• The average yield achieved by landlords was 6.5%
• The average void period reported was 3.0 weeks per annum
Of those looking to invest 47% are expecting to purchase terraced houses and flats or maisonettes.
Almost a third (30%) of landlords are looking to buy semi-detached houses and 20% plan to purchase multi-unit blocks.
The least popular investment choices were HMOs (13%) and detached houses (10%).
John Heron, managing director of Paragon Mortgages, said: “2012 was a good, steady year for landlords. They continued to invest in their property portfolios, albeit at a slower pace than needed for the PRS to cope with increasing levels of tenant demand.
“The next 12 months will be very interesting for the PRS and the buy-to-let market, there will be continuing progress and we will hopefully see confidence levels increase even further.”
