Landlords 'should consider investing in London and SE England'

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The demand for rental property is particularly strong in London and the south-east of the country, an industry expert has claimed.

Simon Gordon, head of communications at the NLA, said that people in the regions felt like they were unable to afford to get on the property ladder, meaning that young people typically opted to rent instead.

A recently NLA study found that 23.4 per cent of landlords plan to expand their property portfolios over the next five years. Currently NLA members have a portfolio of 9.4 rental properties.

"There's demand for accommodation, particularly in London and the south-east and there are people at the moment who feel they cannot afford to get on the property ladder, so they are going to the private rental sector," Mr Gordon explained.

"There is growth in the number of young professionals who are being churned out by universities. If you expand the number of universities and the number of students, you will have more and more people leaving to go and live in other towns and cities, and they will need accommodation.

"The private rental sector soaks up a great number of young professionals. In London, young professionals arrive and they cannot go to the public sector, so they have to go to the private rental sector."

Recently, a report suggested that the lack of housing supply in the UK will mean that landlords will continue to see capital appreciation in their portfolio in the medium and long term.

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