Private landlords 'can help alleviate housing shortage'

Only through further investment from more buy-to-let investors can the UK hope to meet future housing needs, a new report suggests.

Hometrack said that the only way that the UK can hope to achieve its target of creating 600,000 new homes by 2021 is if landlords continue to invest in private sector property.

The company has worked out that around 70 per cent of private rental tenants are unable to access owner occupation, making private rental accommodation vital.

"Our analysis shows that the private rented market we have today has simply become an extension of the affordable housing sector," explained Richard Donnell, the director of research at the firm.

"It's interesting to note that despite the recent buy-to-let boom, privately rented homes let on the open market account for just eight per cent of supply in England.

"What the market really needs is the development of bespoke rented housing designed to meet the needs of renters and which willremain in the sector over the long term."

Recent research from Birmingham Midshires suggested that typical returns on buy-to-let investments reached 13 per cent over the last year.