According to property portal Rightmove, the number of available properties to rent has slumped by 13% nationally. This has pushed rents up by 2.7% annually. This is likely due to the increased taxes that the government has been heaping on landlords to push them out of the private rental sector. In manipulating the market, the government say they want to enable more first time buyers. But as reported here previously, this strategy was always doomed to fail as higher rents make it harder for first time buyers to save enough for a deposit. Plus, as rental returns become more attractive, will it not tempt more investors back into the market? If you are interesting in either selling or letting out, we offer highly competitive VAT free fees: keyone@btinternet.com. NB Figures are for GB however we estimate this is similar to NI and rental increases are probably higher in Belfast.