The majority of the buy to let community want the name ‘landlord’ dropped and replaced by something like ‘small housing provider’

That’s the claim by specialist buy to let brokerage Mortgages For Business, based on a survey of – well, landlords.

Some 59 per cent apparently claimed the term was outdated.

And 43 per cent said they preferred ’Small Housing Provider’ with 36 per cent retaining ‘landlord’ and 21 per cent opting for other options – including ‘Rental Accommodation Provider’ on seven per cent.

Gavin Richardson, managing director of Mortgages for Business says: “Sections of the media have vilified the buy-to-let community.  The government has hammered them – think Theresa May’s three per cent Stamp Duty surcharge and other tax deterrents.  

“It’s got to the point where the buy-to-let community doesn’t want to be associated with the term ‘landlord’ anymore.  The term carries much more baggage than it once did. No wonder the community wants a rebrand.”

Additionally, almost three-quarters of those surveyed said they felt unfairly portrayed as this generation’s financial bogeyman.  

Only eight per cent felt that landlords were not financial bogeymen at all while the remainder accepted that their notoriety might not be entirely unwarranted.

Richardson continues: “The majority of landlords are paying 40 per cent tax on their rental income – plus stamp duty – which means the government is profiting hugely from Generation Rent.  And to what end?  Hammering landlords over the last five years has done first-time buyers no favours – research from Nationwide suggests first-time buyers now need to save a huge 113 per cent of their annual salary for a typical home deposit of 20 per cent.

“What would happen if we took landlords out of the housing equation?  The impact on the property market would be significant and almost entirely negative.  It’s not as if the government is pouring money into social housing – or making any progress on house building.  

“Frankly, the government should be championing landlords and lauding their contribution to the housing sector – landlords are bailing the government out.”

He continues: “On top of that, millions of Brits face a financial crisis in retirement by not putting enough money aside for their pension.  Two thirds of employees aged 45 and over face poverty in old age unless they act soon.  One in five Britons say they have no form of private or workplace pension.  

“It is regularly drummed into us that we need to invest for a comfortable retirement.  And yet, when people start building a nest-egg – investing in property to try to ensure they have an income for their retirement – they are reviled.”