More landlords ‘taking direct control’ of their properties

A growing number of buy-to-let landlords are becoming ‘self-sufficient’ by letting and managing their own rental properties, new analysis from Simple Landlords Insurance reveals.

The study found that almost two thirds of landlords (65%) play an active role in the maintenance of their property, dealing with any problems with tenants themselves rather than via a letting or managing agent.

The research also reveals that 24% of landlords now use an agent to find tenants and then manage the property themselves, 41% do everything themselves, while 35% use an agent to do everything.

Analysis of over 10,000 addresses shows a fifth of landlords live within a mile of the house or flat they rent out and a further 46% live between one and 10 miles away, which may help explain why many landlords are now prepared to self manage their buy-to-let property investments.

Although there has been a growing trend towards people adding to their property portfolios in recent years, the research reveals that the majority of landlords still own just one home.

Almost half - 45% - of those polled owned a single rental property, while 40% owned between two and five properties and 15% said they have a portfolio of more than five homes.

The poll by Simple Landlords also shows that 65% of landlords made a conscious decision to invest in buy-to-let property, while 17% of people who rent out a property identify themselves as ‘accidental landlords’ who decided to rent out a property they inherited or were unable to sell their home. Some 9% of landlords bought their property specifically for a family member to live in, such as for a child at university.

Alex Huntley from Simple Landlords Insurance said: “We are seeing an increasing trend of savvy landlords taking direct control of how their property is let and managed and becoming much more self-sufficient.

“While it can be easy to bash landlords as faceless investors, these results show they are more likely to be part of the community they invest in and take a personal interest in making sure their property is well maintained and tenancies are long-term.

“We are also seeing a growing demand from landlords to be able to manage their insurance policies online 24/7 and to buy flexible and scalable policies as their investments change and grow.”

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