There has been a big rise in the number of accidental landlords over the last three years, say researchers.
The findings from estate agents Bairstow Eves reveal that growing numbers of those who are currently letting a property had previously tried to sell it.
The firm says that a slowdown in the selling of property in the south of England has seen more accidental landlords letting their property rather than waiting for a buyer to turn up.
The research reveals that in 2017, one in 12 properties that came up for rent had previously been on sale - the third consecutive increase.
However, this is still below the peak for accidental landlords in 2010 when 11.1% of new rental properties had previously been up for sale.
Main location for accidental landlords is London
The main location for accidental landlords is London where 12.5% of homes that entered the rental sector had been up for sale previously.
This is the highest figure since records began and exceeds the previous peak recorded in 2010 of 12.1%.
The researchers also found that there are big differences in the regions and with stronger sales outside of the capital means that someone looking to sell their home is less likely to consider it for the rental market.
For example, of new rental properties in Scotland, just 5.6% had previously been up for sale in 2017.
Also, the Bairstow Eves report reveals accidental landlords have less commitment to the UK's buy to let sector and tend to let their property for a shorter period of time.
While the average property investor will own a rental property for 17 years, the typical accidental landlord will rent out their property for just 15 months on average.
Bid for tenants to keep pets receives lukewarm reception
Meanwhile, a call by the Labour Party for all tenants in the country's private rental sector to be able to have a cat or dog in their home has received a lukewarm reception from landlords.
Labour unveiled a draft policy document which pledges that if it comes to power then laws would be introduced to enable tenants to have a pet by default if they do not cause a nuisance.
While many landlords currently ban pets over worries about the damage caused to the property and gardens, a tenant can request permission for a pet but this can be refused by landlord on the grounds of the pet’s size and potential damage it may cause.
The National Landlords Association’s Richard Lambert says landlords may not be overjoyed at the prospect of tenants having the right to keep pets and he said: “You cannot take a blanket approach to refusing or keeping pets.”
He added that around half of landlords are reluctant to allow tenants to keep pets because of the potential risk to their property which includes the increased costs of repair when the tenancy ends.
