Company ownership accounts for 45.1% of UK buy-to-let (BTL) properties, rising to 57.6% among landlords with 20 or more properties, according to a new report.

Property management and finance platform Lendlord’s Q3 2026 UK BTL Market Report found that private ownership remains dominant among smaller landlords, with 67.1% of those holding one to three properties owning them personally.

Company ownership becomes the larger share in the 11-20 property band, a clear indication, it said, towards corporate structures as portfolios grow.

The trend varies geographically, with the North East the most corporate UK market at 53.5% company-owned. Company ownership also accounts for the majority in Yorkshire & Humberside and Scotland.

The report also found that average mortgage rates were higher for company landlords, at about 6.44%, compared with 4.76% for private landlords, highlighting the financing considerations alongside the potential tax and operational benefits of incorporation.

Lendlord co-founder and CEO Aviram Shahar said: "Company ownership is no longer a niche structure used only at the very top of the market. 45.1% of BTL ownership is already sitting in a company, and among larger portfolios it is the majority model at 57.6%.

"That split matters. Smaller landlords still tend to hold in their own name. Larger landlords, and more of the North, have already moved into companies."

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