Four in ten landlords are undecided on who to vote for in the general election – even though almost half buy-to-let owners are concerned about a change of government.
Forty-one percent of landlords said they don’t know which party they will choose ahead of the 4 July poll, according to a Landbay survey.
It found 31% plan to vote Conservative, 12% said Labour, with 5% choosing Liberal Democrat and 1% ‘other’.
However, the survey from the BTL lender adds that 48% of landlords have concerns about a change of government.
Some landlords described Labour as “anti-landlord,” while others said a new government will present “too many unknowns”.
BTL owners will pass judgment next month on a government that has squeezed their tax advantages and tightened regulations for almost a decade.
Landlords saw the removal of their mortgage interest deductions begin in 2017, following former Chancellor George Osborne’s 2015 Budget.
This was followed by a range of other clampdowns, ending in the abolition of the furnished holiday lettings relief by Chancellor Jeremy Hunt in this year’s March Spring Budget, estimated to save the government £245m a year.
“A Labour government will be traditionally landlord unfriendly. Conservative policies of recent years have also been far too punitive to landlords,” one landlord told the study.
Another said: “Everyone is anti-landlord. With a lack of affordable housing, we are the scapegoats. They have increased our tax and compliance burden. The left is making it worse.”
Landbay founder and chief executive John Goodall adds: “Now that the election has been called, it is clear that landlords still need further reassurance from Labour about their plans for government and their policy for the sector.
“The UK needs a strong private rental sector that can support investment and has the ability to scale in order to provide housing to millions of households.
“We therefore urge [Labour leader] Sir Keir Starmer to make clear his plans on housing and how his party will recognise the critical role of landlords and the private rental sector in the UK’s housing mix.”
