The key factors mortgage advisers need to account for when working with landlord clients

The UK housing market has long defied generalisation. While national headlines may tell us one story about the state of buy-to-let, dig a little deeper and you’ll find a tale of sharp regional contrasts. 

This is especially true when it comes to rental yields and landlord behaviour — two key factors that mortgage advisers need to account for when working with landlord clients.

Fleet Mortgages’ latest Rental Barometer, covering Q1 2025, once again underlined just how pronounced these regional differences are. At a headline level, the average rental yield across England and Wales held steady at 7.4%, but beneath that average lies a differing range of performance across the UK. For advisers, this disparity should be more than an interesting data point - it should shape the core of how they guide and support their landlord borrowers.

Take the North East, for instance. This region delivered the highest average rental yield in Q1 at 9.2%, up from 8.4% the previous year. With average monthly rents at just £739 and mortgage loan amounts amongst the lowest in the UK, it remains one of the most accessible regions for new landlords to the market. 

That accessibility is backed up by data: 15% of all buy-to-let applications to Fleet in the North East came from first-time landlords. Similarly, in Yorkshire & Humberside, where yields stood at 8.1%, 16% of applicants were first-time landlords, despite a slight dip in yield from the previous year.

These high-yield, lower-cost regions are often overlooked in national narratives focused on London and the South East. Yet, for landlords focused on income rather than capital growth, and particularly for those building portfolios through a limited company structure, they present a compelling proposition. 

Advisers working with clients targeting these regions need to bring a tailored approach, one that recognises the operational demands of managing high-yield properties, especially where HMOs and multi-unit blocks are involved, and the regulatory considerations around licensing and planning permission that often accompany these property types.

Contrast this with Greater London, where yields in Q1 2025 averaged 6%. Here, the cost of entry is significantly higher, and the average loan amount rises accordingly. This makes affordability and stress testing far more central to the advice process, especially under current regulatory scrutiny and affordability requirements. 

Interestingly, remortgage activity in London accounted for 67% of all landlord applications, indicating what might be described as a more mature landlord base - likely one focused on managing existing portfolios rather than expansion. Advisers in this environment are likely to be supporting more experienced clients who are seeking tax-efficiency, portfolio restructuring, or releasing equity to make other investments.

The East Midlands offers yet another profile which, perhaps unsurprisingly, sits somewhere in the middle. With yields increasing to 7.1% and 19% of all landlord applications coming from first-time landlords - the highest of any region - it represents a growing hotspot for new investor activity. 

For advisers, this raises both opportunities and responsibilities. Educating clients on the fundamentals of buy-to-let finance, portfolio planning, and compliance -particularly in areas with additional licensing requirements - is crucial alongside finding the right mortgage product. Given the large proportion of new entrants, there’s also scope to build long-term relationships as these clients expand their portfolios over time.

The South West (6.7% yield) and Wales (7.7%) also sit somewhere in the middle of the spectrum, but each come with their own characteristics. In Wales, 66% of applications were remortgages, again suggesting a more established landlord base. Meanwhile, the South West continues to attract landlords having smaller portfolios, often as part of broader financial planning that includes retirement preparation or part-time relocation.

All of this data reinforces a core truth: advisers should not treat the UK buy-to-let market as a homogenous whole. Every region has its own profile, yield potential, borrower types, and investment drivers. This diversity demands a more localised, insight-driven approach to advice - one reflecting not just product availability or rate competitiveness, but the broader financial context in which a landlord is operating.

For advisers, that means taking time to understand where their clients are investing, what their motivations are, and how regional factors might impact their financing and management strategy. The ability to contextualise advice to regional market realities is what separates good guidance from great guidance.