📢 🔔📉 “Private rents rose faster last month than they have since records began (Jan 2016) according to the Office for National Statistics” 📉 🔔 📢

This shouldn’t really come as a surprise! While private renters are experiencing new and exisiting rental price increases, it is easy to blame the private landlords for what is happening! However! it is important to remember that while renting prices have increased for renters, mortgage rates have increased for landlords, in addition, the anti landlord legislation from our government which had already made the buy to let industry unprofitable. For example cuts in CGT allowances, decreased autonomy over their own properties whilst simultaneously renters are statistically more likely to default on their monthly payments.

I must say in my personal experience private landlords at the moment are suffering just as much if not more than renters. I am yet to meet a private landlord who at the moment is breaking even let alone turning a profit.

Here is an example, you have worked hard and saved enough to purchase a buy to let property which you were renting a for 2kpcm with a mortgage at a previous rate of 1.2kpcm , your mortgage is now probably around the 2.5-3k mark, making it a monthly loss! Eating into years of savings/profits. Landlords are therefore flooding the supply of housing because they have no choice but to sell, increasing the supply of houses on the market which is a factor for the decline in house prices we’ve seen recently, however the flip side is mortgages are now unaffordable for buyers which puts everyone in a negative position!

Therefore I think it best to look at the policy which has caused and could improve this issue, rather than add to a ‘them vs us’ mentality with renters and landlords.