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The recent budget confirmed that an additional 3% of Stamp Duty will be introduced on second homes, in an attempt to curb the growth of the private rental market.

Marcus Whewell, CEO of The Guild of Professional Estate Agents believes that this will have an impact on prices: ‘When the cost of buying a private rental property increases, rents would normally follow suit as landlords seek to maintain their margins / returns. For that reason, one likely effect is a rise in prices and rents.’

The government has also announced that HMRC is removing the ability of landlords to deduct ‘wear and tear’ from rental receipts before income tax is applicable. Again, it is thought to possibly increase the price of rents as Whewell explains, ‘Although many landlords have complained that this could dramatically reduce the yields from such properties, in a free market, rents could simply adjust to cover this extra risk.’

Other imminent changes include an increase of an average £58 for Council Tax on properties in Band D. This is the consequence of hundreds of councils around the country increasing rates by up to 4% - the largest Council Tax increase for eight years. On the other hand, properties that are rented from a housing association or the council will see a rent decrease by 1% each year for the next four years, starting from April.