Mark Carney – governor of the Bank of England (BoE) – has stated in an interview this week that buy-to-let mortgage lending to landlords will be regulated.
According to the Financial Times, Mr Carney does not wish landlords to be able to access high levels of lending for mortgages without there being any regulation in place, particularly because they will be likely to try and sell en masse if ever house prices fall.
At the BoE’s latest Financial Policy Committee meeting, no move was made to outline how lending to landlords could be controlled, but it was agreed that emergency action could be taken if ever needed.
Partly due to the fact that interest rates have been held at a record low for so long, and because of the growing trend for new buy-to-let investors to enter the marketplace, the BoE is aware that changes will need to come into effect in the near future.
The bank’s governor stated that “we do have to be careful around that (buy-to-let) sector” and added that “there are a number of things happening and we are watching it, we are watching it closely and we will take action”.
In November, the UK’s rate of inflation was recorded as a positive figure for the first time in four months, while still being close to zero, following the trend seen throughout 2015.
Mr Carney, meanwhile, has also confirmed that the BoE is still aiming to hit its 2 per cent inflation target.