Others plan to buy more
Two in three, or 66% of landlords do not intend to sell any of their property in the next 12 months, according to specialist buy-to-let lender Landbay.
Despite reports of landlords planning to exit the rental sector, the latest survey from Landbay showed that majority of them wanted to stay while 36% of those actually intend to still buy.
The other third, based on the survey results, are thinking of selling but only one in ten of them will sell all of their property with the main reason being that property investment is no longer financially viable.
The larger 90% of landlords looking to sell said they only want to sell some of their properties, with 15% of those also intending to buy as they are restructuring their portfolios.
The main reason for selling, cited by 65% of landlords, is rising interest rates, up from 45% a year ago. Meanwhile, 30% said the rent is not covering their mortgage costs compared to 22% in October 2022. The rise in these percentages is not surprising, the lender commented, given that the Bank of England base rate was 2.25% a year ago and is now 5.25%.
Landlord taxation is also a reason to dispose of property for 40% of respondents while 25% pointed to the lowering of Capital Gains Tax.
“Our survey found that one in three landlords are thinking of selling some of their property but not all of it,” noted Rob Stanton (pictured), business development director at Landbay. “They intend to stay in the market but are trimming their portfolios, and some are reorganising as they both buy and sell property.
“Higher costs are typically why landlords want to sell, not just interest rates, but taxation is also an issue for some.
“On the positive side, two thirds of landlords have no intention of selling and 36% of those are looking to buy property. The market is changing and landlords who see opportunities are taking them while others are rethinking their strategy.”
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