Only 2% of current properties listed for sale in London have a tenant in situ, according to lettings agency Benham and Reeves.

This is the lowest proportion anywhere in England.

The agency analysed the number of buy to let properties listed for sale across England with a tenant already in place and how this compares in each region.

The analysis found there were only a little over 11,000 rental properties across the country offering the addition of a tenant in situ. 

The North West boasted the largest proportion – 21% of the national total. The South East ranked second at 16%, although Yorkshire and the Humber (14%), the East Midlands (13%), East of England (11%) and West Midlands (11%) also offered a similar degree of tenanted property investment opportunities. 

Buy to let investments with a tenant in place were fewer in the South West and North East, as each region accounted for just 5% of the national total respectively. 

Marc von Grundherr, director of Benham and Reeves, says: “Void periods can be a significant thorn in the side for buy-to-let investors and will seriously reduce the earning potential of their investment if they drag on for too long.

“So a tenanted property can make for a very appealing investment opportunity as it allows a rental income to be generated as soon as the deal has been done. 

“While London is home to the lowest proportion of tenanted property availability for current investors, they need not worry.

“Such is the imbalance across the capital’s rental market that any available stock is letting at a phenomenal pace and so they can rest assured that if they do bring an empty property on the market, any void period is likely to be very short lived.”