I mentioned a few weeks ago that landlords are selling 700 properties a day, but it’s worth looking at this again because it’s a staggering number.
Actually, to be precise, Savills estimates that 254,000 previously let buy-to-let homes were listed for sale in the 12 months to the end of March. That works out at 697 a day, which is near enough 700 for most of us who aren’t trying to win a prize for spreadsheet accuracy.
That is a lot of rental homes hitting the sales market.
Savills also say the amount of buy-to-let stock for sale is up 28% on March 2024 and 9% higher than the year to March 2025. In London, former rental properties made up 30% of all new sales instructions, compared with 13% across the rest of Great Britain.
So this is not just a few tired investors deciding they’d rather spend their weekends doing something less painful, like assembling flat-pack furniture.
Savills’ Lucian Cook put it quite neatly when he said: “For many landlords, the Renters’ Rights Act has become a clear point at which to reassess their investment.”
Not Everyone Is Leaving
The easy headline is “landlords are selling up”.
And yes, many are.
But the more interesting story is that the market is being reshuffled.
Savills found that 14% of buy-to-let properties that sold were bought by other landlords, so they effectively stayed in the private rented sector.
Hamptons’ research points in the same direction. Between January and April 2026, landlords accounted for 13.3% of all buyers across Great Britain, the highest share since 2016.
But this does not mean everyone has suddenly fallen back in love with buy-to-let. Let’s not get carried away. This is not 2003 with cheaper money, looser lending, and everyone thinking they’re a genius because house prices went up while they were asleep.
Hamptons describe it more as landlord-to-landlord sales. In other words, one investor exits, another buys.
That probably means smaller, more exposed, often mortgaged investors are selling, while better-capitalised investors are picking up stock where the numbers still work.
Where The Numbers Still Work
Unsurprisingly, this is more common in the North.
Hamptons say landlords accounted for 23.9% of buyers across the North East, North West and Yorkshire and Humber so far this year, compared with 9.1% across London, the South East, South West and East of England combined.
That makes sense.
Higher-yielding areas have more room to absorb higher mortgage costs, tax changes, repairs, insurance, letting fees, licensing, compliance, and all the other joys of being a property investor. In low-yielding areas, especially parts of London and the South East, there is simply less margin for error.
If you own a property with a low yield, a chunky mortgage, a tired EPC, and a tenant paying below-market rent, the sums can start to look uncomfortable very quickly.
And when the fixed-rate mortgage comes to an end, uncomfortable can become “where’s the estate agent’s number?” faster than anyone would like.
The Tenant-In-Situ Problem
There is another interesting wrinkle.
Propoly’s research suggests the number of homes listed for sale with tenants in situ has fallen by nearly 44% over two years, from 12,423 to 6,973.
That is worth thinking about.
If you sell with a tenant in place, your likely buyer pool is mainly investors. That may be fine if the property is in a strong investor area and the rent supports the price.
But if investors are more cautious about inheriting tenants they haven’t vetted themselves, that can reduce demand.
On the other hand, selling vacant may open the property up to first-time buyers and owner-occupiers, but it may also mean lost rent, extra costs, delays, and the usual legal fun and games. And I use “fun” in the loosest possible sense.
What Does This Mean For Investors?
For existing investors, I think this is the time to be brutally honest with the numbers.
Not emotional. Not hopeful. Not “it’ll probably be alright”.
Actually honest.
What is the real net yield?
What happens when the mortgage renews?
What will the EPC cost be if improvements are needed?
Is the rent genuinely at market level?
Would you buy this same property today, at today’s value, with today’s finance costs?
That last question is often the most useful. Also the most annoying, which is usually a sign it’s worth asking.
For buyers, there may be opportunities. Some investors will want out, and some properties will be mispriced because the seller is tired, nervous, or simply done with it all.
But don’t assume every ex-rental is a bargain. Some will be tired for a reason. Some will need money spending on them. Some will have rents that look good until you realise what the mortgage stress test does to your borrowing.
As ever, this isn’t advice. Do your own due diligence, speak to a good broker, and assume no one, least of all your lender, is doing you any favours.
The big point is this: the rental market is not disappearing. But it is changing.
It is becoming harder for casual investors, especially those with one or two highly geared properties. It is probably becoming more attractive to serious investors who understand yield, finance, tax, compliance, and risk.
Which, frankly, is how it should always have been.
Here’s to successful property investing.
Peter Jones
Author, property investor and ex-Chartered Surveyor
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