23
Dec
Buy-to-let landlords 'to see strong rental demand in 2011'
A property expert has suggested demand for rental accommodation
will remain high next year, with buy
to let landlords likely to benefit from tightness in the
mortgage market.
Chris Horne, editor of the Property Hawk website, said ongoing
uncertainty about the economy will also persuade a large number of
people to rent instead of buying their own home.
He explained that many prospective first-time buyers are still
struggling to access mortgage finance, so are likely to remain on
the books of letting
agents for the time being.
Mr Horne added that reports suggest some landlords are looking to
take advantage of current market conditions by increasing the
number of properties in their portfolio.
"But that is only going to increase the rental stock very slowly
over the next year or so," he said.
According to figures from the Rent Index, average rents in England
and Wales have increased by 1.9 per cent over the past 12
months.