A survey of 500 buy to let landlords suggests that well over a third are planning to increase the size of their portfolios in the next year, despite the challenges facing the rental sector.

The study for Experience Invest found that 39 per cent want to buy one or more BTL properties while just 11 per cent say they will sell one or more. 

The remaining investors either have no intention of buying or selling any property in 2019 or will be selling some assets to then reinvest in new properties.

Of those who are planning to invest in more properties in 2019, the 10 most likely cities for their portfolio expansion were firstly London, then Manchester, Liverpool, Nottingham and Bristol. 

These were followed by Leeds, Birmingham, Newcastle, Luton and Sheffield.

Jerald Solis, business development and acquisitions director at Experience Invest says:“In light of tighter tax regulations on landlords and on-going Brexit uncertainty, there have been some doom and gloom predictions about the future of the UK property market. But research shows that, as an investment asset, real estate is still hugely popular, with a significant number of property investors looking to grow their portfolio further in 2019.

 “While London remains the most popular location for property investment, other regions across the UK are very close behind. In particular, the North West has established itself as something of a ‘hotspot’ for buy to let investors, with cities like Liverpool and Manchester providing strong rental yields and healthy capital growth.”