Build-to-rent deals surge to almost £800m in first quarter of 2026

Pension Insurance Corporation’s (PIC) purchase of the Ebb & Flow scheme in Reading, from Lincoln MGT, marked the largest acquisition of an operational property outside of central London on record.

In December last year, Inside Housing Living broke the news that PIC was set to buy the 598-home scheme for around £210m.

Following a bumper end to 2025, single-family housing investment volumes had a slower start to 2026.

But with several large transactions currently progressing through legals, Savills expects to see strong numbers in quarter two of 2026.

The number of BTR homes under construction across core cities – including Manchester, Birmingham, Leeds, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Sheffield, Liverpool, Bristol, Cardiff, Nottingham, Belfast and Newcastle – has continued to fall.

Belfast, Glasgow and Nottingham had the lowest number of BTR homes under construction, while Manchester, Birmingham and Leeds had the highest number.

Richard Valentine-Selsey, head of European living research at Savills, said that the total number of BTR homes in the pipeline across the UK’s core cities was around 108,000 at the end of quarter one of 2026 – up 3% from last year.

He noted, however, that the challenges facing urban high-rise development have continued to impact construction activity.

Between quarter one of 2025 and quarter one of 2026, the number of homes under construction across the core cities fell by 11% due to completions outstripping new starts.

Mr Valentine-Selsey added that this trend is likely to continue, as transactions take longer to progress when impacted by planning, building safety regulation and construction cost inflation.

Last month, developers warned that the conflict in Iran could push up construction and energy costs, reducing the likelihood of a rapid rise in housebuilding.

In January, a report on London housing development by consultancy Molior found that construction starts on private homes in London have fallen by 84% in a decade. In 2025, 5,547 homes for private sale or rent were started in the capital, down from 33,782 starts in 2015.

A report by property agency CBRE also showed in January that investment in UK BTR rose 14% in 2025. Total UK BTR investment volumes were just under £4.7bn in 2025, and a further £1.9bn of investment was under offer.

Single-family investment volumes reached £2.7bn, up 56% year-on-year, with £1.56bn transacting in the fourth quarter of 2025.

But investment volumes in multifamily BTR – urban flats – totalled £1.97bn, down 16% year-on-year. Over £550m of urban flats was transacted in the fourth quarter of the year.