Landlords' biggest 2010 fear is regulation

News Category: Industry News

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Landlords' biggest fear for this year is regulation, research has found.

Nearly six out of ten landlords said they were worried about regulation, while 37 per cent said they were concerned about how they would find funds to buy more houses in 2010.

John Heron, managing director of Paragon Mortgages, which conducted the research, said the results were not a surprise, adding that the government regularly amends regulations regarding landlords and letting agents and that changes could even indirectly affect landlords.

The government has tried to bring in more landlord regulations as recently as November, with a proposal to extend the Financial Services Authority's (FSA) remit to the buy-to-let sector. A decision is expected next month.

Mr Heron explained: "If HM Treasury legislates to give the FSA the power to regulate the buy-to-let market, then buy-to-let mortgage product availability may decline and it could become more expensive to borrow."

He warned tenants could see their rent rise to pay this cost, saying: "This must be avoided."

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