Survey shows rise in property investor interest - buy to let mortgages

16 March 2009

The number of people keen to invest in property is on the rise, a new study has found.

Property portal Rightmove has revealed that the total of new buyer enquiries seen in this month so far is up 120 per cent on the equivalent figure from a year ago.

The site's commercial director Miles Shipside commented that this extra interest includes an increase in the level of enquiries from rental property seekers, which has "picked up markedly".

He stated that this can be attributed to the fact that the yields from letting property are greater than can be gained from alternative investments.

Such considerations may lead to an increase in demand for buy to let mortgages.

The trend for new buyer enquiries to rise has persisted over recent months and could be accelerating, recent figures from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors have suggested.

It revealed that the increase in such interest seen in February this year was the highest since August 2006.