The Intermediary – September 2026 - Flipbook - Page 10
BUY-TO-LET
In focus
Holiday Lets
In Numbers
listings, the region accounts for just over 30%
of holiday let stock, considerably more than any
other region.
Morris adds: “That tells us that the impact
can be substantial in parts of Cornwall, Devon
◆ 130,000 unincorporated landlords
declared income from UK furnished
holiday lettings in 2024/25.
◆ £2.46bn in total UK furnished holiday
letting income was declared during
2024/25.
and other popular tourist destinations, while
being relatively insignificant across large parts of
the country. It also highlights why holiday lets
should not be treated as the primary cause of the
wider housing shortage.”
The affordability question
Even in those areas where holiday lets are
adding to pressure on supply, reducing their
numbers only addresses one part of the issue.
While bringing more properties back onto
the residential market may appear to ease the
◆ Furnished holiday lets account for just
4% of total UK rental market income.
problem, it does not mean local households will
be able to afford them.
Abbs explains: “The danger is assuming that
every holiday let removed from the market
◆ Furnished holiday lettings income
stood at £2.46bn in 2024/25
compared with £2.47bn the
previous year.
automatically becomes an accessible home for
a local household. Housing affordability, local
wages, property values and the type of stock
available all play a role.”
The term ‘holiday let’ casts a wide net,
encompassing everything from conventional
homes to larger cottages, premium coastal
properties and accommodation developed
◆ Furnished holiday lettings income
jumped 45% between 2020/21 and
2021/22, during the staycation boom.
Source: HMRC Property Rental Income Statistics 2026
specifically with the holidaymaker in mind.
Tuck observes: “We do see a high number
of properties which would not be appropriate
for local first-time buyers and may have
been converted from disused properties,
which – without the investment – would have
remained disused.”
There are already signs that increasing the
Two years on, and following a period of
considerable change for the holiday let sector,
own, translating into greater housing activity.
the society has not reversed its position.
LandSale has identified more than 10,000
Carton adds: “The reasons behind our
properties suitable for holiday let use currently
restrictions […] remain unchanged. Housing
listed for sale across England, yet Morris says this
challenges are often highly localised, and the
additional supply has not been matched by an
communities we focused on with the 2024 pilot
equivalent rise in completed transactions.
were experiencing particular pressures, with local
residents finding it increasingly difficult to access
a home.”
Adam Morris, founder of LandSale, says: “A
high concentration of holiday accommodation
Between 2024 and 2025, residential
transaction volumes increased by 4.4% across
England, compared with 3.7% in Cornwall and
1.5% in Devon.
Morris says: “Mortgage affordability and
can have a noticeable impact in a small
the wider cost of living continue to restrict
community with limited housing stock. However,
purchasing power. Even when those homes
the issue is far more localised than the national
become available, they may remain beyond the
debate sometimes suggests.”
reach of many local residents.”
LandSale's own figures illustrate this regional
Ford also warns against expecting a fall in
disparity. More than half of the properties
holiday let ownership to translate into an
it identified as currently listed for sale across
increase in affordable housing.
England that are suitable for holiday let use
are located in the South West. Within its own
8
number of properties for sale is not, on its
The Intermediary | September 2026
He says: “It’s probably too simplistic to think
that affordable housing options would directly
p
