EXCLUSIVE: Conveyancer reports big drop in landlords buying BTL properties

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The number of BTL investors buying properties has plummeted in the last six months while long-term landlords are selling up, according to one large conveyancing firm.

Basildon-based PCS Legal reports that before Kwasi Kwarteng’s ‘fiscal event’ last September when the then Chancellor announced a cut in stamp duty, landlords’ property deals made up 20% of its workload – but this has dropped to 5%.

“Both BTL investors and homeowners were impacted, and we saw a big downturn between September and January,” says partner Stuart Forsdike. “For homeowners that has come back – but that’s not the case for investors.”

Uncertainty

He blames uncertainty in the market as well as a reduced volume of available deals, changes in lending criteria, inflation and rising interest rates, which has particularly hit those would-be investors who were previously lured in with promises of a passive income.

“It become quite fashionable to buy buy-to-lets a few years ago, and for people to split properties into HMOs, and the market was saturated with property educators, but since then, margins have got tighter, people are looking at deals with more scrutiny and some of them have got panicked,” he tells LandlordZONE.

Disposals

PCS Legal has also seen plenty of landlord clients disposing of their portfolios. “I can’t recall seeing this in the 25 years I’ve been a conveyancer,” adds Forsdike.

“These are people whom we’ve dealt with for maybe 10 or 20 years. Some of them bought 20 or 25 years ago and are now looking at retirement and want to monetise their assets – often at the lower end of the market or leasehold properties – as they’re probably also worried about the upcoming renters’ reforms.”

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