Market News
HomeLet boss warns of funding crisis in buy-to-let
05/03/2010
Lack of buy-to-let funding could strangle the private rented sector.
The warning comes from HomeLet managing director John Boyle, who is also a landlord.
The latest FindaProperty Rental Index reveals a rise in asking rents by 1.2% to £814 pcm. But Boyle said that unless restrictions on buy-to-let lending are relaxed, there could be more tenants than properties.
He said a surge in the number of ‘reluctant’ tenants – house sellers who cannot find their next home to buy because of the current lack of stock – coupled with a severe housing shortage could cause serious problems across the entire housing market.
Boyle also said that as the number of people renting homes increases, more letting agents would enter the fray, looking to cash in.