Landlords looking to either refinance, or enter the market, may be encouraged to see that buy-to-let rates have dipped to their lowest levels since September 2022, both for a two-year or five-year fixed term. Those landlords who locked into a fixed rate deal in 2023 and are due to refinance will find the average two-year fixed rate has fallen from 6.64% to 4.88%, and the rate started edging below 5% in June 2025. However, uncertainties regarding the path of interest rates, and the changes to mortgage interest tax relief in 2020, meant some landlords would have grabbed a five-year fixed deal for peace of mind. In September 2020, the average five-year fixed rate was 3.20%, but today the difference in rate is around 2 percentage points higher, at 5.21%. The availability of buy-to-let products has increased to 4,597 deals, its highest count on our electronic records (since November 2011), which includes options at the higher end of the loan-to-value spectrum where landlords only need to muster up a 20% deposit or equity.

The cost of finance is a fundamental part of becoming a landlord, as tax changes over the years have led to a more challenging situation for investors to hit desirable profit margins. The speculation on more changes to hit private landlords in the upcoming Budget will also lead to more concerns. Those who do not have buy-to-lets held in a limited company could get hit if National Insurance Contributions (NICs) are levied on pre-mortgage profits. Hamptons had previously estimated that a limited company would be the structure of choice for the next generation of investors. The growing number of set-ups will only escalate if the Government makes the NICs levy rumour a reality.