Buy-to-let property is still in demand, despite the introduction of a wave of measures designed to subdue the market.
According to new figures, the number of second homes being purchased which are affected by stamp duty increased to 62,800 in the final quarter of last year, more than each of the previous two quarters.
An extra 3% stamp duty surcharge came into affect in April 2016, while other measures have also been introduced which aim to slow buy-to-let activity.
However, investors remain enticed by high rental yields and capital appreciation. Low void periods can also be expected by landlords in areas where there is strong rental demand.
Given the mountain many first-time buyers have to climb to secure a foothold on the property market, people are choosing to rent in the longer term, which is helping to drive demand up for rental properties.
The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) reported that in November of last year, landlords borrowed £3.2billion, the highest level of any month since the 3% surcharge increase was introduced that April.
There has been warnings within the industry that extra costs could just be moved on to tenants, while many condemned the government for what they saw as unfair treatment of landlords.
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