More than 3,000 Buy to Let landlords in the UK are under the age of 21, collectively earning more than £66m in rental income a year, shows new data from national accountancy group UHY Hacker Young.
Gen Z landlords are the latest cohort to invest in buy-to-let property, joining over 2.6m other UK buy to let landlords. Property’s record as a stable investment compared to more volatile investments such as stocks and shares has made it an attractive option for UK private investors.
The number of landlords in the UK aged 65 and over has increased significantly.
There are now 696,000 landlords in this age group, up 20% from 582,000 in 2018. Despite the overall number of landlords falling by 1.7% to 2.7m, the 65+ cohort now earns over 27% of all income earned from UK rental properties – equivalent to £11.5bn last year.
The 51-60 age group remains the largest segment of landlords, with 723,000 individuals declaring income from property. In total, 1.67 million landlords in the UK are aged above 51, representing 63% of all landlords
Says Neela Chauhan, partner at UHY Hacker Young: “The large number of under-21 landlords show that the newest generation not only sees the value of investing in property – but also investing early.”
“Buy-to- investments have been hit by a number of negative tax changes in recent years. However, with such a large number of investors in the UK now basing their retirement income partly on buy-to-ley property we hope the new government won’t undermine the sector.”
The total income received from rental properties across the UK reached £41.4 billion in 2022, up from £40.2bn in 2021. This highlights the continued strength of the rental property market,
UHY Hacker Young warn that many landlords, especially pensioners earning over the annual threshold of £12,570, may not be fully aware of their tax obligations and should seek advice to ensure they pay whatever tax is due.
Says Neela Chauhan: “The tax code has become increasingly complex in recent years, and this is especially true for rental income. Proper financial planning is critical to managing rental income effectively and avoiding costly fines from the taxman.”
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Number of Buy to Let Landlords broken down by age and the total value of property income 2022/2023
Age of landlord | Number of individuals that are property landlords (thousands) | Total value of property income (£millions) |
0-12 | 0 | 18 |
13-18 | 0 | 24 |
19-20 | 3 | 24 |
21-30 | 63 | 786 |
31-40 | 318 | 4098 |
41-50 | 582 | 8520 |
51-60 | 708 | 11670 |
61-64 | 264 | 4446 |
65+ | 696 | 11532 |
All | 2649 | 41338 |
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