Investors in buy-to-let are heading into 2007 in an optimistic frame of mind, the Association of Residential Letting Agents’ review and index for the last quarter of 2006 reports.

Six out of ten investment landlords expect to acquire more property in the year ahead and even if property prices were to fall, only 2.1% would sell.

Instead, buy-to-let is understood as a long term investment with a quarter of all investors expecting to hold their properties for more than 20 years. The average life expectancy of a buy-to-let property investment is over 15 years.

On the other side of the coin, tenants are staying for longer than ever. Regardless of the initial term of the tenancy – often six months – tenants are staying for an average of over 17 months. This is a month longer than a year ago.

Adrian Turner, chief executive of ARLA, said, “It remains the case that buy-to-let investors are proving to be good landlords who cater for their market and provide the accommodation that tenants are looking for. This allows the private rented sector to offer real choice in housing.”

These returns are compiled for the quarterly ARLA Review and Index from ARLA member letting agents and investor landlords who subscribe to the ARLA buy-to-let website. This is the largest survey of its kind in the private rented sector with data supplied by 372 letting offices and 279 investment landlords.

These quarterly bulletins are supported by the ARLA panel of mortgage lenders, Birmingham Midshires, GMAC Residential Funding, NatWest, Mortgage Express, Paragon Mortgages and The Mortgage Business.

According to landlords, three out of ten tenants are aged between 23 and 30. A quarter are between 31 and 40 and a further quarter are between 41 and 65. One in six are under 23.

The impact of immigration from the new member states has been noted by landlords but it is clear from their responses that most landlords have yet to try obtaining references from the home countries of these prospective tenants. This is not reflected by ARLA member letting agents surveyed who report that they are experiencing severe difficulties with references from these new EU member states.

Said Adrian Turner, “The lettings industry and buy-to-let investors are both starting the new year in an optimistic frame of mind. Private individuals have taken over as the main drivers of the sector and it is clear that they are here to stay, and for the long term.”

“This new breed of landlord understands that residential property investment can, and must, take account of the ups and downs of the sales and the rental cycles and they are not spooked by scare headlines about housing.”