Buy-to-let boom continues

Buy-to-let mortgage borrowing has reached a record high. There were 2.02m outstanding buy-to-let mortgages at the end of June, up from 1.65m at the end of 2014, according to UK Finance. Most new buy-to-let loans approved by lenders in the first three months of this year were for landlords remortgaging, while 28,500 mortgages of the 67,500 approved were for new properties. Mortgage broker London & Country noted buy-to-let rates remained low and demand for good-quality rental property was still at high levels. Landbay, a buy-to-let mortgage lender, said: “There has been a shift away from amateur landlords towards professional and semi-professional landlords. This has been a consistent trend and we expect it to continue.” 

The Times (16/08/2021)