According to Property Partner, it noted a 15% drop in new rental properties being listed across more than 90 towns and cities in the UK.
In most areas, there was a significant fall in new rental properties advertised. Hartlepool in the North East saw rental listings down a massive 36.5%, and a further 11 towns and cities experienced a shortage of new buy-to-lets being listed including Canterbury (-30.4%), Wakefield (-28.5%), Loughborough (-28.3%), Colchester (-26.5%) and Cardiff (-25.9%).
London saw new rental property listings down 16.4% between July and August. While, in Manchester and Birmingham, new rental ads fell 18.4% and 16% respectively.
Dan Gandesha, CEO of Property Partner, said: “There’s usually a seasonal drop off in new rental properties coming onto the market over the summer. But July saw the highest numbers of buy-to-lets being advertised since the stamp duty hike in April whereas last month experienced some dramatic falls in most parts of the UK.
“Traditional landlords have had it hard of late. Alongside the stamp duty surcharge, the banks have imposed tougher lending criteria, and cuts to mortgage interest tax relief will begin to take effect next year. Profits have been hit and this could force many landlords to sell up. If September fails to pick up and there’s a shortage of available rental properties, rents could be pushed up. Hopefully for tenants, this won’t be the case.”
