The Renters Rights Act has been blamed for a mass sell-off of private student houses, with property experts voicing concern over record numbers of landlords exiting the market.

HMO specialist sales agency YieldMe says it’s seen £170m worth of sales in the last 12 months – equivalent to more than 2,000 student bedrooms, and its highest year on record for transactions.

It reports sales at their strongest across the UK’s leading university cities.

The firm claims it’s “never been busier” fielding enquiries from landlords looking to sell, scale back portfolios or rethink  investment plans as rising costs and tighter regulation reshape the sector.

Managing director James Biddle says: “There’s been a noticeable shift in landlord sentiment over the last 12 months, particularly following the introduction of the Renters Rights Act.

“Landlords are looking at the direction of the market, the increasing costs involved, and the amount of regulation coming in, and many believe it is the right time to sell up.

“The student market itself is still performing very strongly, particularly in major university cities, but the way landlords operate within it is changing.”

The comments come amid wider concern across the rental sector around the impact of the Act, with research from lender Pepper Money suggesting around 220,000 rental properties could leave the private rented sector in England by the end of 2026.

That’s equivalent to roughly 5% of the country’s rental stock.

A separate industry survey revealed that up to a quarter of landlords are now considering selling properties or reducing portfolio sizes ahead of the proposed reforms, as uncertainty continues to build across the market.