Author: Anna Ibbotson

The doom-mongers were wrong. Britain's most prolific London agency has delivered an emphatic verdict on the capital's rental sector in the very month the most sweeping shake-up of tenancy law in a generation came into force, and it is one that buy-to-let investors will read with considerable relief.

News

Foxtons declares London lettings market open for business as Renters’ Rights Act fails to spook investors

Foxtons' April 2026 index shows London lettings demand up 9.5% MoM, supply ahead of last year, and rents firm as the Renters' Rights Act takes effect.

By Anna Ibbotson · May 27, 2026

Britain's reputation as a magnet for international real-estate capital has taken a sharp knock in the opening months of 2026, with planning bottlenecks, the surprise ban on upward-only rent reviews and a thicket of new regulation conspiring to send overseas investors to the sidelines.

Commercial Property Investment News

Overseas buyers beat a retreat from Britain’s commercial property market as red tape bites

Foreign investment into UK commercial property plunged 30% in Q1 2026 to £3.6bn as planning delays, the upward-only rent review ban and building safety hold-ups deter overseas capital.

Anna Ibbotson · May 25, 2026

For decades, the country's most persistent nimbys have armed themselves with little more than a green biro, a parish hall meeting and a strongly worded letter to the planning department.

Opinions

The rise of the robot nimby: AI-fuelled objections are stalling Britain’s housebuilding drive

Cheap AI tools are flooding councils with sophisticated planning objections, slowing approvals and threatening the government's 1.5 million homes pledge, the head of the national planning portal warns.

Anna Ibbotson · May 20, 2026

The era of the polite, pre-enforcement nudge is officially over. Buy-to-let owners across England are being told to assume that the next letter dropping onto their doormat from the council will not be a warning, it will be a fine.

News

Councils ditch the warning letter: landlords face instant fines under the Renters’ Rights Act

Town halls have torn up the playbook on landlord enforcement. Under the Renters' Rights Act, fines of up to £40,000 can land without a warning letter — and…

Anna Ibbotson · May 19, 2026

Britain's private rented sector has just been recast. From 1 May, Section 21 "no-fault" evictions were consigned to the statute book's archive, fixed-term assured shorthold tenancies have been retired, and a new arrears regime has tilted the balance between landlord and tenant for the first time in a generation.

Advice

Renters’ Rights Act takes effect: the new rulebook landlords and investors must master

Section 21 is gone, fixed-term tenancies are history and a tougher arrears regime now bites. Here is what Britain's landlords and buy-to-let investors must do from 1 May…

Anna Ibbotson · May 19, 2026

The National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA) has thrown open its doors to the heavyweights of British residential real estate, unveiling NRLA Living, a new subscription service tailored to Build to Rent (BTR) operators, large portfolio landlords, institutional investors, funders and the professional services firms that orbit them.

News

NRLA widens its tent: new “Living” arm courts build to rent giants and institutional money

The NRLA has launched NRLA Living in partnership with Bidwells, targeting Build to Rent operators, portfolio landlords and institutional investors with market intelligence, compliance support and policy advocacy.

Anna Ibbotson · May 19, 2026

With short-let rules tightening at home and the furnished holiday let regime now consigned to history, British investors looking for genuinely high yields are increasingly casting their eye across the Atlantic. New research suggests they may be right to do so.

Global Insights

Maui tops the league as American holiday-let landlords bank £48,000 a year

Maui tops a new ranking of the most profitable US cities for holiday-let investors in 2026, with owners banking more than $61,000 a year. See the top 10.

Anna Ibbotson · May 19, 2026

Britain's buy-to-let landlords are being forced to rethink their pet policies after the long-awaited Renters' Rights Act came into force on 1 May, handing tenants the legal right to request a furry companion in their rented home, and the right to challenge any refusal.

News

Pets-in-rentals law shake-up could ease pressure on shelters – but landlords warn of sell-off risk

New Renters' Rights Act gives tenants the right to keep pets in rented homes from 1 May. Animal charity welcomes change but warns it could push landlords to…

Anna Ibbotson · May 13, 2026

Guernsey's property market has delivered another bullish quarter for landlords and homeowners alike, with sale prices edging higher and the rental sector posting eye-watering five-year growth that will sharpen the appetite of buy-to-let investors eyeing the Channel Islands.

UK Property Insights

Guernsey property values climb as rents surge 45% in five years

Guernsey house prices rose 4.1% year-on-year to £604,094 in Q1 2026, while average rents climbed 45% in five years to £2,170 a month. Investor analysis here.

Anna Ibbotson · May 13, 2026

Britain's appetite for buying tenanted investment property has all but evaporated, with the number of homes listed for sale with tenants in situ tumbling by almost 44 per cent in just two years, new figures reveal.

UK Property Insights

Landlords turn their backs on tenanted stock as ‘in situ’ sales collapse by 44%

Homes for sale with tenants in situ have collapsed by nearly 44% in two years, with the South East down 60%, as landlords shy away from inheriting unvetted…

Anna Ibbotson · May 13, 2026