Claims by politicians and activists that most former rental properties become homes for first time buyers are not borne out by new research.

Hamptons, which has some 90 branches across the UK, says its data shows that only a third of former rental properties are snapped up by first time buyers while 18% are bought by another landlord, the rest (47%) going to existing owner-occupiers or ‘movers’.

The percentage of former rental properties being bought by first time buyers is highest in London at 56% where yields are lowest and investor purchases are therefore weakest, while in the North East it’s just 18%.

Housing density

Hampton’s Head of Research, Aneisha Beveridge, tells LandlordZONE that while the argument is often made that it’s a good thing to see first time buyers purchasing former rental properties, “it’s worth remembering that rental homes tend to have more people living in them, so this doesn’t solve the housing crisis as such”, she adds.

This is because, for example, three or four renters may inhabit a rental flat that an owner

This data follows claims by several Labour MPs during last week’s second reading of the Renters’ Rights Bill in parliament that properties sold by landlords do not ‘disappear’ from the housing stock and instead are bought by renters who then become first time buyers.

“No one is suggesting that properties which are sold by landlords ‘disappear’ from the market, but regardless of who buys them whether it’s first time buyers or ‘movers’, it’s one less rental property available to tenants to rent,” Ben Beadle, Chief Executive of the National Residential Landlords Association, tells LandlordZONE.

“I’m not saying it’s a bad thing if a former rental property goes into the owner-occupied sector, but it’s not helping the supply challenge and will push up rents ever further.”

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