Landlords made up just 10.9% of all property purchases in Great Britain in 2025, falling from 12% in 2024. Hamptons noted that this is the smallest share of landlord purchases since it began tracking the data in 2012. It is also the first time that landlord activity has dropped below 11% across a full year, which reflects the growing impact of the 5% stamp duty surcharge on buy-to-let investors.
Despite the overall decline, Northern England continues to attract the highest level of investor interest. The North East remained the most landlord-dominated region, with investors accounting for 29% of all home purchases there. While landlords have pulled back in many parts of the country, the South East, East of England and the North East were the only regions to see a rise in investor purchases compared with the previous year.
According to Hamptons, changes in regulation are playing a major role in this shift. Aneisha Beveridge, Head of Research at the firm, explained that if landlords feel that the new Renters’ Rights Act makes the market less appealing, the supply of rental homes could shrink further. She added that weaker demand from investors may push the share of buy-to-let purchases even lower in the coming years.
On the rental side, Hamptons reported that newly agreed rents across Great Britain fell by 0.7% in 2025. This marked the first annual drop in rental prices since its records began in 2011. As a result, the average tenant moving into a new rental property paid £1,371 per month, which is £10 less than the year before.
Meanwhile, the average cost for tenants renewing their rental contracts increased by 3.3% over the year, reaching £1,310 per month. This reduced the difference between the cost of new lets and renewals to just £61, the smallest gap since mid-2021. At its widest point in October 2023, this gap stood at £170 per month.
Beveridge also highlighted that upcoming rules banning offers above the advertised rent could change how landlords price their properties. She suggested that landlords may start listing homes at higher asking rents, as they will no longer be able to accept bids above the stated price. This could lead to advertised rents rising faster than the actual rents that tenants agree to pay.
In terms of supply, rental stock levels were 6% higher at the end of 2025 compared with December 2024. Even so, the number of homes available to rent remains 8% lower than it was before the pandemic in 2019. This indicates that while availability has improved slightly, the rental market is still tight in many areas.
Overall, Hamptons’ latest data shows that landlord buying has slowed significantly, while rental growth has softened. The market remains cautious as both investors and tenants adjust to higher costs and new government regulations.
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