Two thirds (64%) of landlords would further invest into buy-to-let if the evictions process was sorted out or made more efficient, research from Pegasus Insight has revealed.
As it stands the court process makes it hard to evict a bad tenant in good time, while some landlords are also concerned about the upcoming abolition of Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions.
Bethan Cooke, director of Pegasus Insight, said: The fact that a larger proportion of landlords point to a more efficient evictions process as a greater spur to investment than a lower tax regime demonstrates how worried they are about the removal of Section 21 (no fault evictions) in the Renters’ Rights Bill, which the government has confirmed it will introduce within the next year.
“It is no secret that there is a massive backlog in processing evictions through the legal system, and industry bodies have warned that banning Section 21 could overwhelm the courts and prove the final nail in the coffin for some landlords.
“Our research demonstrates that, whatever form the new Bill takes, it must be considered carefully to take into account landlords’ concerns as well as tenants’, to prevent a decline in rental property numbers, and an accompanying rise in rents.”
Lower taxes are the next priority, with 61% of all landlords identifying a reduction in Capital Gains Tax (CGT), 61% selecting the reintroduction of tax relief on mortgage interest payments and 60% citing the removal of the 3% Stamp Duty surcharge as key to attracting more investment.
A drop in mortgage interest rates below 4% was identified by 59%, while 52% would be encouraged by more stability and predictability in regulation.
These numbers were closely mirrored by landlords looking to sell up in the next 12 months (rather than all landlords), but for this group the importance of a more efficient evictions process was even more paramount, at 71%.
A reduction in house prices was not seen as a very influential factor in encouraging investment, with just 16% of all landlords identifying this as important.
