Nearly half (47%) of tenants see larger, corporate landlords as worse or much worse than private individuals, according to new research from LRG.

The property services group found tenants broadly welcome the shift towards a more professional approach in the PRS, with 34% saying higher standards and better maintenance make it a good thing. But this support for professionalism doesn’t extend to corporate landlords as only 27% prefer them. Tenants want landlords who treat letting as a business not those who feel like a business, says LRG.

Its Spring 2026 Lettings Report, which draws on responses from 650 landlords and tenants across England and Wales, also found that despite expectations, the Renters’ Rights Act hasn’t driven a wave of professionalisation. Only 13% of landlords reckon the legislation makes letting feel more like running a business while nearly a quarter feel the loss of control has actually made them feel less professional.

Business

For 45% of landlords, a ‘professional landlord’ simply means someone who treats letting as a business not necessarily a corporation. And by that measure, 83% of landlords still don’t consider themselves professional, as more than half own just one or two properties as an investment, and 29% never intended to be a landlord at all.

Despite the well-documented tax advantages of owning rental properties through a limited company, 95% of landlords don’t do it and only 2% have all their properties held in a company structure.

Meanwhile, nine in ten landlords believe the balance of power in the rental market has shifted in favour of tenants over the last two years – yet a quarter of tenants still feel landlords hold the upper hand, the research reveals, a telling sign that reduced supply is making the new rules feel less meaningful on the ground.

Legal

New legal protections also don’t always translate into greater practical choice, adds LRG. Of those who searched for a rental property in the last two years, 78% found fewer choices than expected and for 32%, the main barrier was affordability.

Allison Thompson, chief lettings officer, Leaders part of LRG, says what this data shows is that landlords and tenants are both describing the same market accurately; they are just experiencing it from different positions. “Landlords feel the weight of legislation that has genuinely shifted protections towards tenants. Tenants feel the weight of a market where there aren’t enough homes to choose from. Both things can be true at once.”

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