Buying to Rent

How to maximise your real estate portfolio income:

When it comes to renting a property or an apartment, there’s more that can impact the price than simply the number of bedrooms and the finish in the kitchen. So, if you’re new to buying to rent as a landlord, this article will help you learn about the several factors that can have an impact on how much rent you can charge and, thus, the income created from this stream.

What is Rental Yield?

First, you need to understand the definition of a rental yield. In simple terms, it’s a measure of how much income a property will generate for its owner compared to its value or initial purchase price. When you’re a buy-to-let investor, this is one of the most important metrics to consider, as it shows the return on investment from the rental income alone.

Impacts in 2026

There are some stable features of a property that will have an impact on the rental yield, but going into 2026, it’s estimated that some of these core predictors may change slightly. If you're looking to buy a home in the next few months to rent it out, these are four areas to consider when making this investment.

1. Location and Tenant Demand

An obvious factor to consider is the location of the property. Areas where there are good transport links or strong demand from young professionals or students will often be rented out quicker and usually come with better rents.

This can be tricky, as for this to work in your favor, you’ll need to buy a property for less and seek to achieve a higher rent. Properties that sell for less are often in less-in-demand areas, which, for landlords, can make it feel like looking for a needle in a haystack. In 2026, you should keep your eyes peeled for regions where the property prices are low but the rental demand is growing, usually in areas outside large cities. If possible, you should also keep your eye out for regeneration projects, which often involve new infrastructure and improved transport links, which can lead to a boost in demand for rental properties.

1. Avoid Premium Areas

Many landlords often dream of having a high rental yield property in a location like London or New York. Realistically, the high cost of properties in these areas weakens the rental yield, making these areas unsustainable and undesirable. If you’re seeking to grow your property portfolio, try to look for areas where property prices have been flat for the last two to five years. This may improve yields if the rents stay stable.

You should also keep an eye out for leasehold issues, service charges, or high ground rents, which can inflate the effective purchase costs.

1. Loan Rates and Taxes

The net rental yield, or income after costs, is impacted by financing and regulatory burdens such as tax and even stamp duty, which can apply to second homes.

You’ll need to assess whether the buy-to-let mortgage rates are rising or falling, as higher interest rates on mortgages will also hit the cash flow from these properties and will make achieving desired yields harder to meet. There may also be property regulatory standards, which will require you to change parts of your property to stay above code and, as a result, will also cost you as a landlord. You can try to stay ahead of this in general by keeping your property in good condition.

1. Property Type

Of course, there are certain types of properties, such as smaller homes, flats, or houses with the potential for multiple occupants (HMOs) that can offer higher yields, and as the purchase price is lower, the rent per room can be higher. Unsurprisingly, a property kept in good condition is easier to maintain and is more attractive to tenants, meaning they’re less likely to walk out mid-tenancy.

For landlords who want to expand their portfolio, it can be worth keeping an eye out for HMOs or multi-bed units in high-demand areas, which tend to be around universities. You also need to know that in these instances, these properties will usually come with higher management and regulatory overheads as well. It can be tempting to buy an older property and refurbish it, but these will usually incur large upfront costs, which can even lead to long-term maintenance issues if those upgrades aren’t undertaken by a professional.

Long story short, try to get your hands on a property that has potential, can be used as an HMO, and, of course, is in an upcoming area of the city or town.