Fifth of landlords have reduced their portfolios due to tax changes

A fifth of buy-to-let landlords claim they have reduced the number of properties in their portfolios due to a range of recent tax changes.

The survey of almost 200 landlords, carried out by secured property lender Fitzrovia Finance, also found that 15% of respondents said they were deterred from buying further properties.

Of those that have sold a buy-to-let property, the average amount of cash released from the sale was £129,746.

Over half of those taking part said they have been affected by tax changes and tighter buy-to-let mortgage lending criteria.

Some 33% of those who have reduced their portfolios said that as the buy-to-let market has become less attractive, they will use property debt investment platforms more.

Meanwhile, 8% said they are already using the funds from rental property sales to invest through property debt investment platforms.

Fitzrovia Finance opened its platform to private investors earlier this year. It allows them to make a minimum investment of £1,000 and benefit from risk-adjusted returns of up to 5.5% per year.

The returns available are derived from investing in loans to selected property companies, secured on properties with first charge security and in excess of 150% asset cover.

Since 2017, the firm has entered into more than £120 million of loans, with no defaults.