Landlords aren’t one thing and this new Govt report proves it

Landlords aren’t one thing, and this new Government report proves it

The Government’s English Private Landlord Survey: Segmenting the business models of private landlords has just done something rare. It has treated landlords as multiple segments, not the single persona you often see in British newspapers.

The report uses the 2024 English Private Landlord Survey and groups landlords by how they operate, portfolio size, reliance on rent, and whether they view letting as an investment, a business, or something in between. It is a technical piece of analysis, but the implications are practical for anyone renting a property in England.

This matters because the private rented sector (PRS) is not small. The report points to the English Housing Survey’s estimate of 4.7 million households renting privately in England, which is 19% of all households. Yet our public debate still speaks about residential “landlords” as if the sector is made up of one type of person, with one set of incentives, and one way of making decisions. The data says otherwise and we at August agree.

Six landlord “business models”, and why that changes the conversation

The report identifies six distinct landlord types in the survey sample. Three are small scale and together make up 83%, this is made up of:

1. Small scale retired landlords (31%),

2. Small scale short-term investors (27%), and

3. Small scale investors for retirement (24%).

Then come moderate-scale, which is made up of two segments:

1. Business and investor landlords (4%) and

2. Large scale business landlords (5%).

Finally, corporate landlords (7%), who rent as a company rather than as an individual.

It also reminds us of a core PRS truth. Around 45% of landlords own just one property (covering 21% of tenancies), while only 17% own five or more (covering 49% of tenancies). Small landlords are the majority by headcount, whereas larger portfolios account for a large share of the homes.

That split should shape how we talk about regulation. Most “rules for landlords” are experienced by someone with one or two properties, limited time, and no back office. Yet the regulatory bar increasingly resembles a professional operating standard. When good landlords trip up, it is often because they are running something that looks like a business with the tooling of a hobby. If that sounds familiar, our guides on best property compliance software, property management apps and property management software are designed to help.

Rent rises are not one story

The rental practices section is a helpful antidote to the idea that every landlord behaves the same way.

Around half of landlords (52%) increased rent at their most recent renewal or extension, while 39% kept it the same and 1% decreased it. Corporate landlords and business-oriented landlords were more likely to raise rent (61% for corporate; 59% for large-scale business and for moderate-scale business/investor landlords). Small-scale retired landlords were less likely (46%) and more likely to keep rent unchanged (44%).

Underneath that, the “why” varies too. Overall, 36% said they set rent to recover costs from renovation or redecoration, licensing, meeting minimum energy efficiency standards, or other energy improvements. But small-scale retired landlords were far less likely to set rent on that basis (16%) than moderate-scale business and investor landlords (38%).

Either way, it challenges simplistic narratives. If rent levels are often justified as “market rent” (the most common rationale overall at 72%), then affordability cannot be solved by appealing to individual virtue alone. If costs and compliance are a meaningful driver for some, then policy that increases costs without addressing supply pressures will keep feeding the same cycle.

If you want to ground “market rent” in your own decisions, you may also like our pieces on rental yields and rent tracking and, for the admin side, the ultimate landlord calendar.

How risk gets pushed onto tenants

The report also shines a light on how landlords manage risk and where that can land hardest for tenants.

Across all landlords, 36% asked for rent in advance in addition to a deposit for their most recent letting. Small scale retired landlords were the most likely to do so at 47%.

At the same time, nine in ten landlords (90%) said they would be unwilling to let to someone with a history of rent arrears. If you have ever wondered why a single missed payment can follow a tenant around for years, that statistic answers it.

The same pattern appears for tenants in receipt of housing support. Among landlords who were unwilling to let to people on housing support, the most common reason was the perceived risk of late or unpaid rent, mentioned by 73%.

If Government wants to reduce discrimination against benefit recipients in practice, it cannot rely only on rules. It has to tackle the operational risk behind the behaviour: payment timing, clearer routes to direct payment where appropriate, confidence in the arrears process, and a court system that resolves genuine disputes at pace. If the system feels slow and uncertain, landlords will keep building bigger buffers, and tenants will keep being screened out.

From a landlord’s perspective, the practical response is better process and better evidence: how to find reliable tenants, rental inspections, a solid inventory, and a clean end-of-tenancy workflow like our inventory checks and cleaning guide.

The big shift ahead: more stability, more need for paperwork

This segmentation work lands at an awkward moment for landlords. The report flags the changing legislative landscape and references the Renters’ Rights Act, which received Royal Assent in October 2025, including the abolition of ‘no-fault’ Section 21 evictions and wider strengthening of tenants’ rights.

For landlords, that does not mean you will never regain possession. It does mean the sector will reward preparation. The days when you could “wing it” on paperwork are ending, because the consequences of gaps in documentation are likely to grow.

The simplest step is to create a single source of truth for each property, including certificates, licences, inspection notes, inventories, and a clear log of repairs and communications. If you can pull that together in one place, you reduce stress, cut mistakes, and you are far better placed if a dispute ever lands in your door.

This is where the report’s landlord types become more than an academic exercise. Larger landlords tend to have process, including templates, reminders, record-keeping, and professional engagement. Small landlords often do not, even when their intentions are good. The gap shows up when a repair dispute escalates, or when you need to demonstrate that you did the right things at the right times.

If you want a starting point, we’ve built a Smart Compliance Checklist product update, and we also keep a library of free printable landlord templates that are designed to hold up when things get tested.

For deposits, it is worth knowing the official baseline. The Government’s overview of tenancy deposit protection sets out the core timing and process, and we’ve also written a practical explainer on what the Tenancy Deposit Scheme is and how to avoid disputes with fair wear and tear and deposit dispute handling.

And on safety documentation, the HSE’s guidance on gas safety check records is the kind of page you want bookmarked.

Who is staying in the sector, and who is growing?

The “future plans” section should make every policymaker pause.

Across all landlords, 42% planned to keep the number of properties they let the same over the coming two years. But 31% planned to decrease (including 16% planning to sell all properties and leave the sector), while only 7% planned to increase.

Corporate landlords stand apart. They were the only group where the intention to increase (26%) exceeded the intention to decrease (21%).

That could be a good news story if it leads to more professional standards and longer-term investment. It could also mean consolidation, with fewer small landlords, fewer local “one-off” options, and a sector that becomes more concentrated.

The report links these plans to perceived policy pressure. Among those planning to decrease or leave, recent tax and legislative changes were cited as a reason by 81% of moderate-scale business and investor landlords and 78% of large-scale business landlords, compared with 46% of small scale retired landlords. The detail matters, even the landlords who look most “commercial” are signalling that policy design and implementation shape whether they stay.

For landlords thinking through “stay or go”, we’d point you to the crucial basics, including managing tax, landlord insurance, and seasonal risk-proofing like preparing your rental property for winter.

Our view: precision beats slogans

It is right to raise standards and improve security for renters. But it is a mistake to treat the landlord population as uniform. This report is an invitation to be precise. Different landlord types respond differently to incentives, costs, and risk.

If Government wants a stable supply of good quality homes long into the future, it needs regulation that is clear, enforceable, and supported by practical guidance. If landlords want to thrive under the new regime, they need to run the important parts of rentals with discipline. In other words, keep the documents, follow the timelines, record the decisions, and communicate clearly.

Because whether you are a “retired landlord with one flat” or a “business landlord with a portfolio”, you are still providing someone’s home and this is a critical task.

Here is the full Government publication.