There could be an influx of new landlords on the buy-to-let market soon as many of those looking to access their pension under the new reforms from April are thinking of investing in property.
A fifth (20 per cent) those aged 50 and above who are planning to access their pensions under the new reforms from April, will spend the money on new properties, according to a new survey from holiday letting specialist holidaycottages.co.uk.
The survey reveals that 38 per cent of the people aged 50+ are planning to take advantage of the pension reform and withdraw from their retirement savings pots.
London residents are the most keen on the idea of property investments with almost half (47 per cent) of those planning to access their pension looking to put the money towards a new home.
Holidaycottages.co.uk, which manages 2,000 cottages across the UK, says an investment in a holiday property could also be a source of good returns.
With the average price of property in holiday hotspot Cornwall at £246,657 (according to Zoopla, February 2015) and average weekly holiday rental income of £918 per week in peak summer, property-purchasing pensioners could see a good return on their investment. Similarly, Devon holiday cottages booked last summer saw an average income of £901 per week, with an average house price of £254,134 in the county, showing that the right property could be a lucrative investment.
“More and more people, both domestic and foreign tourists, are choosing the UK for a holiday. With bookings up 32 per cent this year, there is a real opportunity for the holiday letting market. Our property portfolio has grown almost 10 per cent in a year. Some of the new properties which joined us in January have already been booked for almost 50% of the year, showing that demand is extremely strong for UK holidays,” James Morris, director of holidaycottages.co.uk said.
