More than four out of five brokers (84%) were unsuccessful in securing a buy-to-let (BTL) mortgage for some of their clients in Q4 2016, according to research from MTF.

Over a quarter (27%) cited affordability as the main barrier, and a fifth attributed it to consumer BTL regulations. 

This follows news from Loan Talk last week that landlords could become mortgage prisoners under the Prudential Regulation Authority’s new minimum standards for BTL underwriting, which started to come into effect earlier this month.  

The Broker Sentiment Survey from MTF also revealed that 20% of brokers were unable to secure BTL mortgages for clients with adverse credit.

As an alternative, some 8% of brokers turned to secured loans, with 69% opting for bridging finance where speed was essential. 

Commenting on the results, Tomer Aboody, director of MTF, said: “The results from our Q4 survey reflect the adverse impact of stricter affordability and stress testing from mainstream lenders on professional property investors’ ability to obtain BTL mortgages.”

Some 38% of brokers stated they didn’t know if market conditions would improve this year and 56% highlighted the economy as their greatest concern, followed by property prices at 19%.