The race is on for buy-to-let landlords, as the mortgage market sees a record number of remortgage searches ahead of looming regulatory changes.
With the Renters’ Rights Bill and new Stamp Duty rules prompting many landlords to restructure their property portfolios, leading adviser tech platform Twenty7tec has reported the busiest day on record for BTL mortgage searches.
Activity on 18 March 2025 reached double the volume of the previous day, with the surge contributing to one of the highest seven-day totals ever recorded for BTL activity.
The data comes amid growing concern from landlords about affordability, tax burdens and increased regulation – particularly the end of fixed-term tenancies and changes to Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions under the Renters’ Rights Bill, expected to come into force in the second half of 2025.
While recent changes to Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) – including the reduction of the general nil-rate threshold to £125,000 – are prompting some investors to re-evaluate their long-term strategies, the record spike in mortgage search activity is more closely linked to landlords remortgaging to future-proof their portfolios ahead of regulatory shifts.
This is reflected in Twenty7tec’s data, which shows a 22.9% month-on-month rise in buy-to-let mortgage searches in the £150,000–£250,000 bracket – significantly higher than the 6.4% growth in residential searches.
Nathan Reilly, Director at Twenty7tec says:
“As new changes appear on the horizon, we are noticing that landlords are acting more decisively when it comes to their next steps, and we’re seeing a significant increase in buy-to-let remortgages as property investors look to future-proof their portfolios.
“The spike in searches for properties between £150,000 and £250,000 is particularly telling. That price band is seeing the greatest change in activity, and it’s BTL, not residential, that’s driving it.
“In addition to this, we are seeing record levels of products available, with 25,218 total products by the end of March. This is 128 more than February – up 0.51%. There’s more choice than ever for buy-to-let landlords, but with external pressures mounting, the next few months will be telling as to whether landlords stay the course, adapt their strategies – or begin to exit the market altogether.”
