A lack of mortgage finance for landlords could hit students hard, according to Landlord Assist.
The tenant eviction and rent collection specialist is expecting a shortage of student lets for the 2010/11 academic year, as buy to let lending remains tight.
Students are already turning their thoughts to next year’s accommodation and according to the firm’s managing director, Graham Kinnear, the search for a suitable home will be far more difficult than last year.
Kinnear blames tighter controls on mortgage lending in the private rented sector for the problem, which he expects to affect both the choice and cost of accommodation in university towns.
Landlord Assist’s commercial director, Stephen Parry, said: “There is a real need for more quality student accommodation throughout the UK. “By restricting the availability of finance, landlords are unable to expand their portfolios and the ultimate losers are those in need of rented accommodation – students.”
For investors with cash to spare, higher education and student accommodation remains the best performing property sector for landlords, with strong levels of demand, full occupancy levels and good prospects for rental growth, according to Landlord Assist.
