Charity calls for a review of buy-to-let

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A national housing charity has called for a review of the way in which the buy-to-let sector functions in the UK.

Shelter was responding to a recent Rics study which found that rents on properties in the UK are steadily rising.

Caroline Davey, deputy director of policy and campaigns at Shelter, said that soaring house prices and rents were putting some people in the country in a difficult position.

She explained: "First-time buyers are caught between a rock and a hard place - the housing ladder has been pulled out of reach and this report now shows spiralling rents mean finding somewhere affordable to live is becoming harder and harder.

"The government's promise of three million new homes is a welcome first step to solving the housing crisis, but it needs to be combined with a review of the buy-to-let market and its effect on first-time buyers."

However, Arla has repeatedly said that landlords are important in a climate of increasing house prices as they offer another option for those who cannot afford to buy their own home.

"Private buy-to-let investors have refinanced the private rented sector and restored social acceptability to renting," explained Ian Potter, Arla's operations manager.

"The loss of any private individual investors would seriously affect the rental market and severely curtail choice in housing."

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