UK build-to-rent investment reached £3 billion in the first half of 2026, making it the second-strongest start to a year on record, according to new figures from JLL.
The total was 28 percent higher than a year earlier and 6 percent above the five-year average, helped by several large portfolio deals in the second quarter. But the new release also carries a sharper warning: funding for fresh multifamily development has fallen to its lowest level since at least 2015.
For landlords, that split matters now. Big-ticket capital is still willing to buy completed rental stock, but backing for new schemes is drying up. That means institutional appetite has not disappeared – yet the pipeline of additional rented homes could still stay tight.
Investment rebounds but development stalls
JLL said the headline £3 billion figure was driven by three major transactions, including L&Q’s Metra Living portfolio, Lendlease’s Elephant Park development and Blackstone’s disposal of around 1,000 single-family homes from Leaf Living.
Multifamily assets accounted for roughly two-thirds of all build-to-rent transactions in the first half, while single-family rental investment reached £1 billion. That suggests investor demand remains strong for established income-producing stock.
This follows Landlord Knowledge’s earlier coverage of rental homes staying out of the market, which pointed to continuing institutional demand. The new JLL figures reinforce that trend, but add an important caveat: money is flowing into standing portfolios faster than into new delivery.
Why supply still looks constrained
JLL said forward funding, forward purchases and land acquisitions made up just 10 percent of multifamily investment in the first half of 2026. Between 2023 and 2025, that share was closer to two-thirds.
That is the part private landlords should watch. When development finance stalls, the wider rental market gets less help from new supply. Smaller investors may still face competition for stock on the way in, but they are also operating in a market where chronic undersupply remains unresolved.
The wider backdrop also links to Landlord Knowledge’s report on the housebuilding slowdown, which showed how construction weakness was already putting pressure on future housing delivery. The latest JLL release suggests the same tension is showing up inside the rental investment market itself.
JLL’s latest figures are outlined in its UK living and residential research coverage, where the firm said development viability remains the main drag despite strong investor demand.
What this means for landlords
- If you are buying for yield: institutional demand is still active, especially for well-located rental stock.
- Watch for: fewer newly delivered homes in markets where development finance remains difficult.
- If you own existing stock: a thin supply pipeline can continue to support occupancy and rent resilience.
- Do not overread the headline: strong investment volumes do not automatically mean more homes are being built.
- Bottom line: demand for rented assets is holding up, but the supply problem behind landlord returns is still there.
Editor’s view
These figures look positive until the funding split is pulled apart. Investors still want rental income, but the market is not yet solving the harder question of how to build enough new homes to relieve pressure.
Author: Editorial Team – UK landlord & buy-to-let news, policy, and finance
Published: 14 July 2026
Sources: JLL
Related reading: Hamptons says failed sales could keep 100,000 homes out of the rental market
