More than a quarter of private landlords in the UK are planning to increase the size of their property portfolios in the next year, according to new research from Butterfield Mortgages.

This compares to just 7% of landlords who said they plan to sell up.

The mortgage provider commissioned an independent survey among 2,000 UK adults and found that of those who own buy-to-let (BTL) properties, 26% plan to increase the size of their portfolio in the coming 12 months.

Two thirds (67%) of respondents said they intend to keep their portfolios at the same size as they currently are. Despite some speculation that there will be an exodus of landlords from the BTL market, just 7% of the landlords surveyed said they plan to shrink their portfolio in the next year.

Butterfield’s study also revealed that half (49%) of landlords found the rise in interest rates a challenge in terms of managing their property investments. Just 37% of respondents said they had increased their tenants’ rent in the last year, while 62% felt uncomfortable about doing so at a time when many tenants were dealing with the increased cost of living.

“For the best part of a decade, speculation has been rife that landlords will quit the BTL market in their thousands,” commented Butterfield Mortgages CEO, Alpa Bhakta.

“However, our data is the latest to challenge such predictions, showing that the vast majority of private landlords remain committed to either maintaining or growing the size of their property portfolios. It underlines the enduring appeal of BTL as an asset class, even despite added costs and regulatory complications for many.”

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