Analysis of the lettings market from Countrywide has found that the average size of landlord’s portfolios tends to be small, with only 6 per cent owning more than a single rental property.
Landlords in London have the smallest average rental portfolio size with only 4 per cent of landlords owning more than a single property, the Countrywide Residential Lettings Index revealed.
The cost of purchase and size of deposit required, being a significant barrier to increasing portfolio size. London also has the largest proportion of landlords living more than 100 miles away, with more than 1 in 5 landlords doing so, which is nearly twice the UK average.
It also found that more than half (56 per cent) of buy-to-let landlords property investors in the UK live within 10 miles of their rental property, the Countrywide Residential Lettings Index has revealed.
The North East had the highest number of landlords living within 25 miles of their property (83 per cent), followed by North West (81 per cent) and East Midlands (71 per cent). London was at 60 per cent.
In more rural areas such as Wales and the East of England, the low proportion of landlords living within 10 miles of their rental property is explained by a sparse population. Instead of investing in the same village or town, landlords choose to live further away whilst still remaining close enough to keep an eye on their asset. The proportion of landlords living between 10 and 25 miles away in Wales and the East of England is the largest in the country.
A regional perspective
The average monthly rent in the UK in February 2014 was £861, up 0.2 per cent month-on-month and 3.1 per cent year-on-year. Seven out of 10 regions saw a month-on-month decrease in average monthly rent, with Yorkshire and Humber seeing the greatest decrease, down 6 per cent, followed by the North East, down 3.1 per cent. Of those regions that saw an increase in average monthly rents, Central London and the South West saw the greatest month-on-month increase, up 4.1 per cent.
Over the past 12 months, average monthly rents have increased in 8 out of 10 regions, with Scotland seeing the most significant increase up 9.6 per cent year-on-year to £626pcm, followed by Central London up 8.5 per cent to £2,630pcm. The West Midlands and Yorkshire and Humberside saw a year-on-year decrease in average monthly rents, down 6.2 per cent and 0.7 per cent respectively.
Arrears
In February, arrears fell year-on-year in all regions apart from Scotland and East of England, where they increased 2.7 per cent and 0.1 per cent respectively. The North East saw the greatest year-on-year fall in arrears, down 1.8 per cent.
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