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Landlord confidence grows as average rent hits record high
Growing demand for rental accommodation has boosted landlords’ confidence in the past three months, with 69% of landlords expecting tenant demand to increase further in the next 12 months.
Research by LSL Property Services has revealed that the 50% of landlords saw a rise in tenant demand during the third quarter, which helped push average rents to a record high in September of £689 per month.
This was the eighth consecutive month of rent rises.
In addition, 48% of landlords believe that now is a good time to invest in property compared to 42% in Q2, while just 1% thinks that now is the time to reduce their portfolios.
The LSL poll showed that 72% of landlords plan to maintain or expand the size of their portfolio in the next 12 months.
However, the ongoing lack of mortgage funding continues to prove their greatest obstacle to investment, with 71% of landlords who recently tried to obtain a mortgage finding it more difficult to secure than a year ago. Just 4.8% believe it is easier to access finance.

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David Newnes, estate agency managing director of LSL, which owns Your Move and Reeds Rains, said: “The government’s Spending Review last month is expected to swell the ranks of tenants as potential social tenants opt to enter the private rented sector, instead of facing long waiting lists for social housing where they can expect to pay 80% of market value. An increase in the supply of rental accommodation will be necessary to meet this demand – and many landlords recognise this as an opportunity for investment.”
Newnes added: “The private rented sector is crying out for more investment to meet the boom in tenant demand and landlords hoping to expand their portfolios will be relying on an improvement in lending conditions.
“More lenders are now starting to enter the market, which should mean there are more affordable products available to landlords. However, overall lending is not expected to loosen significantly in the next couple of years.”