The rental sector is continuing to shrink as landlords leave the market, and fewer people are interested in buying rental properties, according to Jonathan Rolande, from the National Association of Property Buyers (NAPB).
Rolande has claimed that landlords are in a “peculiar position of being a minority apparently hated by all sides”, with both tenants and would-be homeowners blaming them for contributing to the housing crisis.
He also criticised the Government for failing to support landlords or provide a strategy to make them unnecessary.
He said: “It’s also a legal obstacle course where minor errors can trip up the unwary, often with huge financial implications.” Rolande also predicted that forthcoming regulations will make the situation worse, adding: “With more legislation on the way… it is hard to see why anyone would still want to buy-to-let given that there seems little prospect of capital growth and returns.”
And Rolande argued that the Government’s policies were ultimately harming tenants: “We may soon end up in a situation where much-needed homes disappear from the rental market forever, before any housing stock has been built to replace it. Already beleaguered tenants will face fewer choices and inevitably, higher rents.” He argued that the Government had overlooked the fact that “owner-occupiers pay more than landlords”, partly because of tax breaks and lower interest rates.
The comments come in the wake of the phasing out of mortgage interest relief for individual landlords, which has reduced the net income of many landlords, making it more difficult for them to cover their costs and generate a profit from their rental properties.
Some landlords have increased their rents to cover the additional tax costs, leading to difficulties for tenants in affording rental properties.
The reduction in supply of rental properties in some areas has also made it more challenging for new landlords to enter the market.
