There has been a strong start to the year with UK build-to-rent (BTR) investment volumes in Q1 2026, showing £795 million transacted, according to recent research.
Property experts Savills also revealed this is the highest first quarter of investment in the sector since 2022.
Laura Skoda, director, London residential investment, Savills Operational Capital Markets, says: “Activity has been driven primarily by investors acquiring operational stock, which has accounted for 68 per cent of investment.
“Over three-fifths of that were in London. With significant capital still targeting well-located, income-producing assets, we expect deal flow to remain strong as the year progresses.”
Beyond London, Pension Insurance Corporation purchased Ebb and Flow in Reading from Lincoln MGT, which was the largest acquisition of an operational asset outside of central London on record.
Following a bumper end to 2025, single family housing investment volumes had a slower start to 2026.
However, with several large transactions currently progressing through legals, Savills expects to see strong Q2 numbers.
A single-family home is a freestanding residential property, designed to be a single-dwelling unit and built for the specific purpose of being rented.
Research into this field highlighted that this rental sector saw record investment levels of £3.17 billion last year.
Richard Valentine-Selsey, head of European living research at Savills, adds: “Across the UK’s 12 core cities, the total number of BTR units in the pipeline rose to around 108,000 at the end of Q1 2026.
“This was up three per cent compared with a year earlier. However, the challenges facing urban high-rise development have continued to weigh on construction activity.
“The number of units under construction across the core cities fell by 11 per cent between Q1 2025 and Q1 2026, due to completions outstripping new starts.
“This trend is likely to continue, with urban multifamily funding transactions remaining muted, as deals take longer to progress given headwinds from planning, building safety and construction cost inflation.”