Landlord Insurance News Landlord Insurance Provider Finds Its A Mixed Market For Buy To Lets

Written by Editorial Team

22 April 2010 / by Rachael Stiles

Landlords are currently riding high on the wave of MPC decisions which have left the base rate at a record low for more than a year, but they see clouds gathering on the horizon.

As first time buyer mortgages remain difficult to secure without the aid of a significant deposit, landlords have been enjoying a healthy rentals market, buoyed by low interest rates, and a slight recovery in house prices.

But, according to landlord insurance provider SimplyBusiness.co.uk, they should make the most of it because low interest rates will not last forever and there’s no certainty what the outcome of the upcoming general election will hold for the housing market.

Landlords fear that the successful party will likely introduce further measures to help first time buyers to get on the property ladder, research from SimplyBusiness.co.uk has found, making long-term prospects for the rental market less than certain.

But in the short-term, landlords remain positive, the research revealed, with 78 per cent displaying optimism about the buy to let market during the course of the next 12 months.

And, only a quarter reported that they had to lower their rents to keep their properties occupied during the recession, despite properties which owners could not sell flooding the rental market following the housing crash.

As property prices start to recover, 70 per cent of landlords have seen an increase in their property’s value, which could further complicate the already difficult situation for potential first time buyers, and, combined with inevitable hikes in mortgage interest rates, will push up rental demand even further.

Commenting, Julian Watson, landlord product manager at SimplyBusiness.co.uk, said that landlords are “realistic that interest rates can’t stay this low indefinitely, and are nervous of initiatives the next Government will introduce to assist first-time-buyers.”

The vast majority (86 per cent) who responded to the landlord insurance provider’s survey said that the measures announced in the recent Budget would not help landlords.

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