Private rental market overtakes social housing

The private rented sector has overtaken social housing for the first time in England according to the latest findings of the English Housing Survey. 

There are now more tenants in the private rented sector than in social housing. According to the Survey, of the 22 million households in England in 2012/13, four million were renting privately, while 3.7 million were in social housing.

That’s excellent news for investors who are looking to move into buy to let investing.

The private rental market is no longer the domain of just students and young professional tenants. Many professionals now prefer to rent rather than buy, while families with children are also increasingly choosing to rent.

Older renters make great tenants because they tend to rent for longer periods than their younger counterparts, which gives the buy-to-let landlord a stable income from their property and reduces void periods. Older tenants are also less likely to damage the property.

Stephen Ludlow, Chairman of ludlowthompson, comments: “The buy-to-let market continues to be an excellent investment opportunity for potential investors. The pool of potential rental tenants is huge and continuing to increase so buy-to-let investors are in a great position to benefit.”

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