Landlords would leave if rent controls were introduced

A third of private sector landlords would sell properties if rent controls were introduced, research from research consultancy Pegasus Insight has revealed.

Scotland has previously capped rent increases at 3% per year, while The Housing (Scotland) Bill going through parliament will enable ministers to introduce rent controls in some areas.

Despite calls from London Mayor Sadiq Khan, the Labour leadership seem reluctant to introduce rent controls.

Ben Beadle, chief executive of the National Residential Landlords Association, said:

“Ultimately rent controls would be a disaster for tenants.

“All they would do is choke off supply further, undermining what little choice tenants currently have when looking for somewhere to live.

“Housing is expensive because we don’t have enough of every type of property, be it for owner occupation, social rent or private rent.

“The only way to solve this crisis is to boost supply right across the board.”

As it stands, rental demand is strongest in the South-West, followed by the South-East, the East of England and the East Midlands.

The North-East has the lowest levels of demand, with 68% of landlords describing it as strong.

There are signs supply will continue to be squeezed, as landlords look to sell amidst higher mortgage rates, the upcoming loss of Section 21, and a flawed eviction process.

Despite strong demand, landlords were two times more likely to have sold properties over the previous year than have purchased rental homes.

Some 8% had bought properties to rent out, compared with 17% who had sold.

Looking to the year ahead, whilst 10% said they planned to purchase new homes to rent out, one-third planned to sell over the same period.

Kindly shared by Property Wire