On the first hearing of Last Christmas and the decorations hitting the tree, I can’t help but feel a mix of emotions. Part of me is excited for the festivities ahead and part of me is reflective about the year that was.

It’s been a hectic, challenging, yet rewarding year from a business perspective and I thought I’d take the opportunity to take a whistle-stop tour of the buy-to-let (BTL sector over the past 12 months and pick out some observations along the way.

Back in January, the industry was consumed with accelerating a range of property related purchases over the course of Q1 and, at that moment in time, it was difficult to look beyond the impending stamp duty deadline due to the heavy workloads that were piling up all around us.

Of course, this deadline was subsequently extended to alleviate some pressure on intermediaries, lenders, conveyancers and buyers and this also paved the way for a new wave of residential and BTL business to roll in.

As we tip-toed our way towards the summer months, I’m sure I wasn’t the only one dreaming of a holiday, whether exotic or somewhere a little closer to home. Whilst the UK vaccine programme offered some hope that an overseas break might just be on the cards, the ‘staycation’ remained firmly on the agenda for many and the number of holiday let products rose substantially.

The BTL market remained buoyant throughout the summer, with many landlords adding to their portfolios. And with many highly competitive deals and outstanding service propositions emerging from the more specialist lending markets, it was hardly surprising to see a growing number of landlords benefiting from the advice process and the value attached to this.

At the end of September, we saw the stamp duty deadline come into effect, which resulted in a slight lull across the residential housing market – but this has certainly not quashed the appetite of landlords, investors and developers across the UK.

This was highlighted in last month’s piece, where I highlighted how we, as a business, have continued to experience a sustained rise in enquiry levels from landlords who are looking to add to and increase the diversity of property types within their portfolios, especially at the more professional end of the landlord spectrum.

There has been a vast amount of talk around portfolio diversification over the past 12 months and it’s fair to say that all types of landlords have had to take some tough decisions when it comes to their present and future plans.

Some of these have come at the expense of individual properties. Some have concerned the future direction of their portfolios. Some have revolved around location and even locations within locations. And these types of decisions will continue to be prominent in 2022 which, to reemphasise, will be reflected in an increased reliance on good, professional specialist advice.

Looking forward, more opportunities will continue to present themselves across the BTL sector and with speculation of an interest hike rising, an increasing number of homeowners and landlords will look to take advantage of what will remain a highly competitive remortgage market. Factors which bode well for a busy Q1 and beyond.

Cat Armstrong is mortgage club director at Dynamo for Intermediaries