Buy-to-let investors are capitalising on a cooling housing market, using their chain-free position and increasingly their cash reserves to push for steep price reductions, according to new analysis from Hamptons using Connells Group data.
In July 2026, landlords accounted for 14.1% of all home purchases in Great Britain, up from the 12.4% year-to-date average.
Investor numbers typically rise in slower markets. As overall buyer demand cools, seasoned investors look to take advantage of a weaker market and leverage the certainty they can offer to more motivated sellers.
Investors push harder for bargains
Investors became more ambitious with their offers last month. The average landlord paid just 88.7% of the initial asking price in July.
In fact, over half (56%) of offers from investors during July 2026 were at least 10% below the seller's initial asking price - the highest proportion since the first Covid lockdown in April 2020. This is up from 48% in June 2026 and 45% in July 2025.
Investors buying in cash looked to push for an even harder deal. 63% of offers from cash-backed landlords in England & Wales last month came in at least 10% under the initial asking price.
By contrast, owner-occupiers were less ambitious. Last month, only 25% of offers from first-time buyers and 27% of offers from home movers came in at more than 10%+ below the first asking price.
Owner-occupiers typically have less leverage, and more likely to be dependent on a mortgage and be part of a chain.
Acceptance rates rise
Sellers are increasingly willing to accept these lower offers. In July, 27% of offers from investors at 10% or more below the initial asking price were accepted, compared to just 18% in July 2025.
Motivated flat owners are leading this trend: sellers of leasehold properties accepted 41% of these discounted offers, highlighting price weakness and lack of demand in the apartment market.
The willingness to accept a lower offer typically correlates with how long a home has been on the market:
- 45 days: Average time on market before an offer from an investor within 10% of the asking price was accepted during July.
- 109 days: Average time on market before an offer which was 10%+ below the asking was rejected.
- 140 days: Average time on market before a low-ball offer was accepted, with many of these properties having already undergone prior price reductions.
Southern cool spots lead on low investor offers
The prevalence of lower investor offers was highest in Southern England, with the exception of London. The South East saw the highest share of opportunistic offers in the country, with 70% of investor offers coming in at least 10% below the first asking price. The South West followed behind with 60%.
However, many of these low offers were rebuffed by sellers. In the South East, offers which were 10%+ below the initial asking price accounted for 54% of accepted deals, and 44% in the South West.
By contrast, offers 10%+ below the asking price accounted for just 32% of agreed deals in the North East last month and just 16% in London where, despite a tough market, sellers were least likely to accept a lower offer
Rental growth
Rental growth for new lets in Great Britain continues to climb, reaching 1.9% year-on-year in July, taking the average rent back above £1,401 per month. This is the fastest pace of rental growth recorded for new lets in 19 months.
The pickup in rental growth has primarily been driven by Southern England. Here, newly agreed rents are now rising faster than anywhere else in the country, having lagged behind elsewhere in previous months.
Newly agreed lets in Outer London are now back above the £2,000 per month mark, having fallen below this level in early 2025. While newly agreed lets in the South East passed the £1,500 per month for the first time in July. The average rent in the South East of England in August 2023 is now the average rent nationally.
Annual rental growth for all rental homes (including both new lets and ongoing tenancies) has continued to edge down, falling from 2.2% in June to 2.1% in July. This means the average tenant in Great Britain is paying £1,258 per month compared to the £1,401 paid by someone moving home.
Meanwhile, the size of the average rent increase where one takes place, now stands at 5.6%, up slightly from 5.5% last month and 5.1% earlier in the year. At 7.7%, the size of the average increase in Scotland remains materially larger than in any other region of Great Britain.
