'Good year ahead' for buy-to-let market

The buy-to-let market will perform well during 2008 due to burgeoning demand for rental property, it has been claimed.

Specialist brokers the Business Mortgage Company said that "key factors" were driving the market and would ensure the coming 12 months are profitable for landlords.

"There are rising levels of tenant demand as people wait to see what happens in the housing market before purchasing," a spokesperson for the company said.

She added: "The current slowdown in the housing market may enable landlords to drive genuine discounts off the true market value of properties and snap up some bargains."

Despite the rosy outlook, the spokesperson acknowledged that a "lack of choice" was tightening up the market and stopping some investors from acquiring new properties.

"Many lenders have reduced their loan-to-values (LTV) and the 90 per cent LTV buy-to-let mortgage has practically disappeared," she noted.

Earlier this month, the Financial Times reported that the last of the 90 per cent LTV buy-to-let mortgages had been removed from the market.

News posted on 29th April, 2008