Spring budget 2023 – what are the implications for landlords?

Wed 15 Mar 2023

Although many commentators are saying the Chancellor’s spring budget largely ignored the property sector, there are several measures put in place that will at least give landlords more certainty around tenants’ ability to pay their rent, even if the hoped for direct tax relief didn’t materialise.  

The three-month extension to the Energy Price Guarantee that limits household bills to £2500 a year (when it was due to rise to £3000) means the average household budget will be protected from a hike in energy prices, coupled with the fuel duty price freeze.  

In addition, measures to offer more childcare support will boost the budgets of eligible parents. New funds allocated to schools and local authorities for the provision of childcare either end of the school day, from 8am and 6pm, will also reduce barriers to work for tenants with families.

In our experience, landlords genuinely care about their tenants and often work with them to help them through difficult periods. Anyone who has tenants with children may feel the support for families is reassuring in terms of rent surety.

Pre-payment meters will be brought into line with comparable direct debit payments and financial support is still available for those who need it under the Energy Bills Support Scheme adding further reassurance to landlords who may be concerned about tenants falling into arrears.

The advice for professional landlords and investors is to watch the market and keep an eye on trends. There was no mention of tax incentives to boost new stock in the housing market which means the private rental sector is still in demand giving confidence to those looking to increase their investment portfolio.

With no incentives to encourage existing landlords to remain in the market or attract new landlords with tax-breaks there’s potentially an opportunity for professional landlords to benefit from economy of scale by acquiring property from single property-owning landlords exiting the market and using our fully managed letting service.

Call our Lettings team on 01507 350500 Option 2