Nearly 93,000 buy-to-let landlords are expected to exit the rental market this year, according to new research from a specialist lender.

The forecast, drawn from the firm’s latest broker insights report, points to a six per cent decline in the number of buy-to-let landlords across the UK by the end of 2025.

HMRC data shows that in 2023, there were 2.84 million unincorporated landlords in the UK. Of these, it estimates that around 1.62 million—roughly 57 per cent—held buy-to-let mortgages, based on figures from the 2021 English Private Landlord Survey.

The sector has already seen significant contraction. Between 2023 and 2024, the number of buy-to-let landlords fell by 65,000, representing a 4% drop. The latest projections suggest that this trend is accelerating, raising fresh questions about the long-term viability of the private rental market.

A spokesperson the firm, said: “Not only does this survey indicate the loss of more than 150,000 landlords from the rental market over a two-year period, it also shows the rate of change is accelerating year-on-year

“It’s likely these are landlords with small portfolios of one or two properties – landlords who don’t want to face the ongoing changes to regulation and rising costs.

“Being frank, brokers who write a lot of vanilla BTL business may be nervous to find that there will be fewer buy-to-let landlords overall going into 2026. 

“But we think the industry will be left with a more professional cohort that is more likely to embrace opportunities or property deals that require specialist finance.  Professional landlords are more likely to be interested in bespoke auction products or a residential bridge to make quick property acquisitions and provide them with the time they need to organise tenants – even refurbishment bridge products can be used to fix up a bargain ahead of securing a buy-to-let mortgage. There will still be opportunities for brokers.”

Of the brokers surveyed, less than a quarter (23 per cent) anticipated that the number of BTL landlords would grow this year.  In contrast, more than half (56 per cent) are forecasting a drop in numbers; the survey was completed during the Summer of this year.