Louisa Sedgwick comments on UK Finance’s Q2 BTL update

21 October 2026

Louisa Sedgwick, Paragon Bank Managing Director of Mortgages, comments on UK Finance’s Q2 BTL update.

“Remortgaging continues to be the story of 2026, accounting for approximately three quarters of completed buy-to-let loans during the period. We expect that trend to continue throughout the rest of this year and into 2027 as five-year loans written during the buoyant market of 2021 and 2022 mature.

“Overall lending has remained fairly robust considering the impact of the Iran War on mortgaging pricing, with the value and number of loans for buy-to-let house purchase in line with the average quarterly level recorded since 2024, the period when the market entered recovery following the mini-Budget.”

Considering the long-term impact of new housing entering the private rented sector, she added: “The number of new purchases today is running approximately 5,000 below the average run rate per quarter since 2013, however, and I suspect new stock entering the market is not keeping pace with exits.

“That creates long-term challenges for tenants through diminished choice and inflated rents, so policymakers need to be mindful of this growing imbalance between supply and demand as it considers next steps for housing policy.”