Nearly eight out of 10 (79%) landlords have opted to use tradespeople based near their rental properties, spending on average £6,003 a year each on local services, research from Aldermore has revealed.
The most common services landlords looked for locally included electricians (52%), plumbers (50%) and handymen (34%) to sort ongoing maintenance issues with their rental properties.
Around one in seven (15%) also opted to use local interior designers and structural engineers, while a similar amount (14%) used local architects.
A desire to support the local economy was the main reason why landlords used local services (37%).
Meanwhile a third (34%) shopped local because they trust local services.
However, in a challenging economic environment, three in five landlords (59%) were looking to downsize their portfolio – as a combination of high interest rates, falling house prices, regulation changes and cost-of-living pressures have made being a landlord unsustainable for some.
Indeed, almost two-thirds (63%) found it harder to be a landlord this year compared to 12 months ago.
This came at a time when demand for rental accommodation is high, with 73% of landlords seeing an increase in tenant demand for their property in the last year.
While some landlords would like to expand their portfolio, almost two thirds (64%) said that they were unable to due to market conditions.
Nearly seven in 10 (69%) landlords said that private landlords exiting the market would hurt the quality of properties available.
Meanwhile, a similar number of private renters (71%) felt the private rental sector was essential to meet the UK’s housing demand.
Jon Cooper, head of mortgages at Aldermore, said: “Amid a backdrop of ongoing market challenges – from high interest rates through to regulation changes – some landlords are considering downsizing their portfolios.
“However, there will be plenty of larger-scale, professional landlords that will instead look to purchase more buy-to-let properties.
“This should, over time, provide useful ballast to the private rental sector.
“Landlords remain absolutely vital to addressing the UK’s housing demand. Our data shows they’re generous contributors to their local economies as well.
“Whilst they sometimes get a bad press, there are so many good landlords out there making a really positive difference.”
