The buy-to-let business in the United Kingdom (UK) has been strong throughout 2013 and a survey from Paragon Mortgages shows that landlords across the country have high hopes leading into the new year. More landlords are looking to add to their portfolios in 2014 and many prospective landlords are looking to get in on the action. Lenders note, however, that despite growth in the industry they are only now seeing the kind of numbers they saw 10 years ago and many agree that it would take a lot more expansion to label 2014 as a boom period. For more on this continue reading the following article from Property Wire.
Optimism among landlords in the UK remains at a record high with 33% expecting an increase in net value of portfolios and a fifth planning plan to buy property in the first quarter of 2014.
Landlords are looking to 2014 with an increasing sense of optimism for the wider buy to let market and the performance of their rental portfolios, according to the latest survey from Paragon Mortgages.
The specialist buy to let lender’s fourth quarter private rented sector trends survey of around 200 landlord customers, found that 38% of landlords are feeling optimistic about the prospects for their portfolio.
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During the second half of 2013 landlords’ optimism has been at the highest level recorded. Those surveyed were also feeling positive about the value of their property investments with 33% expecting an increase in net value in 2014.
This has also been an upward trend, having dipped to an all-time low between 2008/2009 and remaining relatively flat through 2010/2012.
Just over a fifth of landlords are planning to invest in further buy to let property in the first quarter of 2014. Of those landlords looking to buy, large scale landlords were more likely to expect to purchase property at 25% than small scale landlords at 8%.
‘2013 has been a good year for buy to let and landlords certainly seem to be more active in the market. We have seen a steady increase in the levels of optimism among our landlord customers, and this looks set to stay in the New Year,’ said John Heron, director of mortgages at the firm.
‘We expect buy to let lending market wide in 2013 to be in the region of £20 billion and whilst this would represent a material level of growth over 2012 we should keep things in perspective,’ he explained.
‘This only takes us back to the level of buy to let lending that we had 10 years ago and over that period the private rented sector has increased by 80%. Any talk of boom conditions in the buy to let market would appear to be premature indeed,’ he added.
This article was republished with permission from Property Wire.
