BTL experts expressed optimism about lending opportunities and welcomed the shift towards professionalisation of the market during the BTL panel at this year’s Finance Professional Show in London.
The panel of lenders, which was moderated by Nicola Firth, CEO at Knowledge Bank, discussed the latest trends, challenges and opportunities for BTL landlords.
However, when the panel asked the audience whether they felt landlord confidence had changed since early 2024, none of the respondents gave a positive score, highlighting the cautious mood among landlords.
Resilience is key
While acknowledging these concerns, panellists emphasised that the industry had the ability to adapt and identify growth opportunities even during challenging times.
Karen Rodrigues, chief sales officer at Market Financial Solutions, issued a reminder that the PRS is “an essential part of the housing ecosystem”.
David Whittaker, CEO at Keystone Finance echoed this sentiment, noted that the IMLA reported £38bn in BTL transactions in 2025, with £42bn expected by 2026.
“If you see no fixed rate for your own home, grab it while you can,” he said, suggesting rates might fall slightly before a big inflection point next summer.
This suggested that, despite the current caution, transaction volumes remained strong and were expected to grow.
The professionalisation of the market
The panel also reiterated that landlords were becoming more sophisticated in how they structure their portfolios.
Andrea Glasgow, sales director of specialist mortgages and bridging Finance Specialist at Hampshire Trust Bank (HTB), noted a sharp rise in limited company activity, adding that her team were already creating bespoke structures to help clients overcome affordability and ICR constraints.
“I would say we bespoke between £40m to £50m a day. Without bespoke, many of our deals would have fallen on the wayside.”
Advisory and tax challenges
Andrea noted stressed that landlords should seek expert tax advice first as the quality of advisory services can vary.
“Just be very mindful. We have seen a few situations where a client has misunderstood advice, or the advice has been incorrect.”
With minimising the tax burden also being particularly important when affordability remained a key pressure point for landlords, Frankie Kitchen, BDM at UTB highlighted the work he and other lenders were doing to support investors, using deferred-interest models to increase loan sizes.
“This is particularly helpful for investors that want to utilise the leverage as much as they can for their properties.”
One of the takeaways from the panel was that while the outlook for the market remained positive, lenders and landlords would need to balance caution with strategic planning to take advantage of upcoming opportunities in 2026 and beyond.