This is positive news but should be viewed with some degree of caution as April was always going to be a slow month for mortgage applications due to the end of the stamp duty holiday and various bank holidays.

The buy-to-let market is continuing to perform at a steady rate. June was a good month for Paragon with a healthy level of applications. Our recent Private Rented Sector (PRS) Trends Survey showed that just over a fifth (21%) of landlords are planning to invest in further buy-to-let property in the third quarter.

Of those planning to invest, terraced houses continue to be the most popular housing choice with 49% of landlords saying this is their preferred choice. Almost a quarter (23%) of landlords said they are looking to purchase semi-detached properties.

These investment choices perhaps reflect the fact that landlords are adding properties to their portfolios which better cater for more diverse tenant types such as families with children and groups of friends or young professionals who share.

As the pressure on the PRS continues to grow we need to see more investment from landlords. Research commissioned by the Resolution Foundation and Shelter reported that by 2025 people renting homes in the PRS will rise to 22% (compared to 7% in 1994). This is a significant increase and demonstrates just how important the PRS is.

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The PRS is very much taking the strain following government cuts in social housing, and has been contributing to filling this void for some time.

However, there still needs to be further stimulation in the sector and government, lenders and regulators have to improve the way they work together to develop a more fluid market, ensuring there is a functional housing sector for all areas of the community.

It will be interesting to see therefore, how investment in the PRS grows in the second half of the year.

Julian Rance is sales director of Paragon Mortgages