In a new survey released by Paragon landlords about the last quarter of 2011, the results were glowingly in support of the low mortgage rates that were available on the market. A combination of falling house prices and some of the best mortgage rates led many to expand their portfolios during the close of the year. As tenant demand continues to increase it seems that landlords are sitting in exactly the right position to make some money with wise investment and letting principles intact.

The survey, PRS Trends, is carried out every quarter and asks a sample of landlords for feedback on rental income levels, the amount of tenant demand out there on the market, their portfolio size, and how they feel about the current buy to let mortgage rates.

Most landlords reported that they were getting the highest yield from their properties during the last quarter of the year when compared to the other three quarters of 2011.  In fact, on average landlords saw their yield increase by about 0.5% from the third quarter to the fourth quarter.

Another half of the landlords in the survey reported that they had noticed demand increase from tenants that were looking for places to let during the last quarter showing a solid increase of about 6% during the previous quarter. It is most likely that this trend is going to continue over the course of 2012 as many landlords will see more people heading through their doors instead of taking out a mortgage of their own.

The same trends have been noticed within the commercial mortgage as well as most businesses would whether rent a property over owning it. Landlords were also questioned about buy to let financing options during the last quarter of the year in regards to how available it was to them.  27% felt that it was widely available and easy enough to attain if wanted with a slightly higher 35% stating that they felt there were still some limiting terms placed on mortgage portfolios.

Either way, the statistics from the survey prove that the last quarter of 2011 was an excellent year for those who are an active part of the buy to let market and that the rental market is likely to continue to expand over the coming year.