Press Release Summary: The news earlier this week from the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) that the number of buy-to-let mortgages taken out last year was higher in the credit-crunch blighted second half than the roaring first six months may have surprised many.
Press Release Body: The news earlier this week from the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) that the number of buy-to-let mortgages taken out last year was higher in the credit-crunch blighted second half than the roaring first six months may have surprised many. But it appears this has not been the only news indicating that the continued strength of buy-to-let is only too real.
Commenting after the release of this news, Nick Clark, the managing director of the Homebuyer and Property Investor Show, said: \"The results of the CML survey are a far cry from the doom and gloom forecast of the property and buy-to-let property market and consistent with our own findings.\"
But there was more. The number of people coming to the show itself was a demonstration that things were looking healthy, he suggested: \"It is clear that people have retained confidence in the market, we have seen demand for the Homebuyer and Property Investor Show to be as high as ever as people look to invest in the buy-to-let as well as the wider UK and overseas markets, with 11,000 visitors already pre-booked for the show, a figure in line with the previous few years.\"
Mr Clark added that a third of those coming to the show were professional property investors, which showed that this continued demand included the most expert practitioners.
The wisdom of continuing to invest in buy-to-let property was explained by Malcolm Harrison, spokesman for the Association of Residential Lettings Agents. He told the BBC: \"In the past two years we have seen more single households being formed, more requirement for flexibility among contract workers and immigration pays a part too.\"
Indeed, it appears demographic factors could be one of the chief drivers of the market. CreditExpert, a subsidiary of Experian, revealed today in its latest personal credit index that 48 per cent of those who do not own their own home and rent instead believe they will never get on the housing ladder.
The most common reason mentioned for this is affordability, which 46 per cent of renters stated to be the prime reason for not being able to buy, a figure that rises to 56 per cent for 25 to 34-year-olds and 60 per cent of 35 to 44-year-olds. In addition to this, there is a clear geographical difference, with affordability being the barrier to home ownership for 55 per cent of those living in the south, compared with 39 per cent in the north.
Unfortunate though this is for those in this group who would prefer to own their homes, the fact that so many are in this position means that the buy-to-let industry can expect to enjoy continued - maybe indeed lifelong - demand from some people, with the greatest need being among the young and those in the south. It implies a long-term demographic situation which offers investors good prospects for many years to come.
2012
