Private rental sector remains ‘fundamental part’ of housing market

Posted on Friday, May 27, 2016

With tenant demand continuing to rise, the private rented sector (PRS) will remain a “fundamental part” of the UK’s housing market moving forward, according to a leading buy-to-let specialist.

Despite uncertainties in the buy-to-let sector following recent regulatory and fiscal changes, John Heron, Managing Director at Paragon Mortgages, believes that the PRS remains vital.

“We have every confidence in the buy-to-let market, with tenant demand continuing to remain high and in some areas increasing, the PRS will remain a fundamental part of the UK’s housing market now and in the future,” he said.

Buy-to-let lender Paragon Mortgages increased its lending by 84.5% over the six months ended 31 March 2016, when compared with the same period a year earlier, going from £446.2m to £823.6m.

The rise was due, in part, to an increase in activity as landlords looked to beat the 1 April stamp duty deadline, but it also reflects the fact that market fundamentals remain strong, despite the various regulatory, legislative and fiscal developments that have contributed to create uncertainty over the future shape and scale of the buy-to-let market.

Heron added: “Demand for private rented property remains strong regardless of the significant policy developments we have seen in recent months. The Prudential Regulation Authority’s proposals, currently in consultation, will introduce a level of discipline to the market that we welcome and in particular require that more complex business is subject to an appropriately robust commercial assessment, similar to that which Paragon already applies to more complex business. Paragon is therefore well positioned to deliver solutions for landlords through a period of significant change in the market.”

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