The proportion of landlords selling former rental properties has almost halved over the past year, suggesting the wave of buy-to-let exits that has characterised the private rented sector in recent years may be beginning to subside, according to the latest Property & Homemover Report from TwentyCi.
The share of homes coming to market that were previously rented fell from 22.5% in Q1 2025 to 12.4% in Q1 2026, a year-on-year reduction of 45%. The decline was seen across the UK, with London recording the sharpest fall – down 51%.
However, the data also indicates that former rental properties are rarely returning to the lettings market after being sold. Of properties sold in Q2 and Q3 2025, only 6% outside London were subsequently re-let, rising to 11% in the capital, suggesting most are likely being absorbed by owner-occupiers rather than other investors. As a result, the overall stock of private rental homes continues to fall.
The findings come as the broader housing market made a relatively stable start to 2026, with new listings up 5.1% year-on-year. Transactions were down 3.9% compared with last year but up 10.7% on Q1 2023 and 19.2% on Q1 2024, once the distorting effect of last year’s stamp duty deadline is taken into account.
Colin Bradshaw, chief executive of TwentyCi, said the market was “continuing to tick along nicely” despite global disruption, though he noted some initial cooling in London and the South East as fixed mortgage rates have moved back above 5%.
Several headwinds are emerging. Buyer enquiries fell sharply in March, mortgage pricing has become more volatile, and inflation concerns are prompting the Bank of England to hold rates rather than cut.Â
The report expects transactions in 2026 to be broadly similar to 2025 – around 1.2 million – but said the outlook depends on whether geopolitical pressures have a wider economic impact.
In the lettings market, the number of rental properties coming to market rose by nearly 19% year-on-year, while lets agreed increased by 5.8%. Average rents edged down 2% to £1,450 per month but remain close to record highs, with affordability still a significant constraint for tenants.
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