Now is a good time to invest in rental property, says ARLA
Posted by Lucy Wooldridge
The current rental market means that now is an excellent time to invest in buy-to-let in London and elsewhere in the UK, it has been suggested.
According to figures from the Association of Residential Letting Agents (ARLA), increased demand for rental property is causing a surge in buy-to-let investment in many areas of the UK.
Its figures show that 60 per cent of ARLA member agents have seen achievable rent levels on residential property rise in the last six months, while buy-to-let property has outperformed other investment classes consistently for the past two years.
Furthermore, the average period for which a rental property is empty in between lets has fallen to just 2.7 weeks per year, down from an average four weeks two years ago.
"Three-quarters of our members are reporting that demand for rental property is outstripping supply and, with rental returns currently at five per cent, anyone thinking about investing a property to rent could be well-placed to consider their options in the coming months," said Ian Potter, operations manager at ARLA.
Many landlords are already taking advantage of this and expanding their portfolios.
Almost a quarter of landlords (23 per cent) reported that they have bought properties in the last year, with investment property >>>IN<<< London especially popular.
Mr Potter added that anyone thinking about investing in buy-to-let for the first time should seek advice from residential letting agents.
It follows recent figures from financial advice service Unbiased which revealed that buy-to-let is now the third most sought after area of advice on the firm's website's 'find a mortgage adviser' search, suggesting more people are looking to invest in buy-to-let properties.
Consumer enquiries for buy-to-let mortgage advice rose from 17 per cent in September to 25 per cent in October.
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