Banks need to be more flexible with buy to let mortgages, say regulators

21 April 2010

Written by Jeni Browne

The provision of buy to let mortgages needs to become more flexible to support the private rental sector, according to the Association of Residential Lettings Agents (ARLA), the professional and regulatory body for letting agents in the UK.

Research conducted by ARLA for the first quarter of 2010 has revealed that demand outweighs supply on the buy to let market.

ARLA has called for greater support from the government and banks to help the private rental sector keep up with demand.

"Investors need to be treated as businesses, with proper incentivisation to invest in and refurbish older properties," ARLA said in a recent statement.

The survey of UK letting agents and landlords has found that 59 per cent of the participants reported that there weren't enough properties available to cater for the number of tenants on the market during quarter one. This is a 50 per cent rise on the last quarter.

The speed at which tenants are signing up for homes is also increasing, with properties now lying vacant for an average of only 3.6 weeks.

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