Despite all the tax and regulatory changes of recent years, the UK’s private rental market remains substantial.
There are an estimated 5.5 million privately renting households, housing nearly 13 million people and generating approximately £77bn a year in rental income.
But the market is now divided between two distinct groups: individual landlords and those operating through limited companies. It means that, in order to get an accurate picture of a typical property portfolio, they must be analysed separately.
Individual landlords’ portfolios
Individual landlords still dominate the market, accounting for 81% of private tenancies in England.
There were 2.88 million unincorporated landlords declaring UK property income in 2024/25, between them generating almost £59bn.
The average property income was £20,500, its highest level in five years and 24% higher than in 2020/21.
However, that average masks a very broad range of investors. Around 1.3 million landlords, or 45% of the total, declared property income of £10,000 or less.
Among individual landlords, the average portfolio comprises 4.9 properties, worth a combined £1.3m and generating around £56,000 a year in gross rental income.
That works out at an average value of around £265,000 per property and roughly £11,400 in annual rent from each one.
Limited company portfolios
Limited companies currently account for 15% of private tenancies in England, but because they are seen as more tax-efficient, their numbers are growing.
One of the main differences is the treatment of mortgage interest. Limited companies can deduct it as a business expense when calculating taxable profits, whereas individual landlords receive a basic-rate tax credit on their finance costs.
Landlords using companies tend to have much larger portfolios. The average has 12.8 properties worth £2.7m and generates £158,000 a year in gross rental income.
That’s more than two and a half times as many properties, more than twice the portfolio value and almost three times the rental income of one held by an individual landlord.
The properties themselves tend to be cheaper, though. At around £211,000, the average is roughly 20% below the £265,000 for individually held portfolios.
Yet each generates around 8% more rent, averaging £12,300 a year compared with £11,400.
Landlords also report slightly higher yields from limited company portfolios, averaging 6.6% compared with 6.4% for individually owned portfolios.
Limited company portfolios tend to carry more borrowing. Some 69% of company landlords use finance, compared with 53% of individual landlords, and have an average of 9.5 buy-to-let loans compared with 5.6.
The average amount borrowed against a limited company portfolio is £1.4m, with a typical loan-to-value ratio of 56%.
And those operating through companies are almost twice as likely to work full-time managing their portfolios, at 27% compared with 14% of individual landlords.
More companies being established
And as their numbers grow, limited company portfolios are reshaping the way the buy-to-let market operates.
A record 66,587 buy-to-let companies were established during 2025, taking the total to more than 443,000.
Around three-quarters of new buy-to-let purchases are now being made through limited companies, with an estimated 1.5 million rental homes already held within company structures.
Data sources
The figures in this article draw on a number of respected data sources. These include:
UK private rental market: ONS and English Housing Survey.
Landlord income: HMRC Property Rental Income Statistics 2026.
Individual and limited company portfolio data: The Mortgage Works landlord research.
Individual and company shares of English tenancies: English Private Landlord Survey 2024, based on landlords registered with government-backed tenancy deposit schemes.
Buy-to-let company numbers and company-owned rental stock: Hamptons.
