Landlords reporting rent arrears and void periods all down

Paragon Bank commissioned a survey of over 750 landlords by BVA BDRC, which has reported a decrease to 32% of landlords confirming that they have had at least one tenant in rental arrears during the previous 12 months.

This is down from 34% against the previous quarter and is the lowest level of rent arrears since it was first tracked six years ago.

MD for Mortgages at Paragon Bank, Richard Rowntree, said: “It’s great to see that that the proportion of landlords experiencing tenants who are behind on their rent has fallen to the lowest levels since the metric was first tracked in 2017. We do know, however, that the cost-of-living crisis will not impact tenants in the same way, and it is likely that paying rent will be a real challenge for some. From speaking to landlords, we also know that many have good relationships with their tenants and are often open to working with them to overcome any financial issues.”

Void periods also down in number and duration

The proportion of landlords reporting void periods during the previous three months also fell to 24% in Q4 2022, down from 28% in the previous quarter.

During the same period, a drop from 82 to 70 days was also seen in the average void duration. Interestingly, the data revealed that landlords managing larger portfolios, those with eleven or more lets, tend to report having properties vacant for shorter periods of 44 days compared to average.

Rowntree added: “This is unsurprising given the demand for privately rented homes, also at record levels. This adds further weight to the argument for investment in affordable housing across all tenures, something that buy-to-let landlords should be recognised for making an essential contribution towards.”