"Without stability, pressure in the rental market does not ease, it builds" - HTB comments on ONS Private Rent and House Price data

25 March 2026

Alex Upton, Managing Director, Specialist Mortgages & Bridging Finance, Hampshire Trust Bank:

“Landlords are navigating a rental market where supply remains constrained and confidence is under pressure. Demand continues to outstrip available stock in many areas, but the more meaningful shift is in how investors are responding to a more complex and less predictable operating environment.

“We are starting to see lenders become more selective, and in some cases step back from parts of the market. That matters. When funding options narrow at the same time as regulatory and cost pressures increase, it creates a more challenging landscape for brokers and landlords to operate within.

“Landlord behaviour is adjusting accordingly. Expansion is no longer the default. Many are reassessing exposure, refining portfolios and prioritising assets that offer stronger and more reliable income. More experienced investors are not stepping away, but they are being far more deliberate in how they allocate capital and structure their portfolios.

“These conditions are reshaping funding demand. Landlords are not simply refinancing, they are restructuring. That means releasing capital selectively, consolidating borrowing and repositioning portfolios to reflect tighter margins and higher compliance expectations. It requires lenders who can assess cases on their merits, take a long-term view and structure funding around how portfolios operate in practice.

“In this environment, consistency and clarity are not optional. Where funding remains accessible, decision making is clear and lenders continue to engage with complexity, confidence holds. Where it does not, it falls away quickly. That is where the real risk sits. Without stability, pressure in the rental market does not ease, it builds.”