Buy-to-let remortgages outstripped purchases by more than two to one last year, according to figures from specialist adviser Mortgages for Business.

In the most complex sections of the buy-to-let market – lending to landlords with Houses in Multiple Occupation or those buying larger blocks of flats – remortgaging made up an even greater propertion of deals done, as landlords raced to secure their mortgage repayments last year amid rumours of a rate rise. Around three-quarters of complex buy-to-let business was made up by landlords wanting to switch their deal.

David Whittaker, managing director of Mortgages for Business said: “The results aren’t surprising; for some time now landlords have been making considerable savings through remortgaging. Many have also been releasing equity to make improvements and plan further purchases. However, I anticipate that we will see a reversal of this trend in the first quarter of this year as landlords hurry to expand their portfolios before the Stamp Duty surcharge kicks in on 1^st April.

“The number of enquiries for purchase finance is already well ahead of where we were this time last year, particularly from those looking to sell their personally owned property into a corporate vehicle.”

The number of lenders operating in the market remained steady at 33. However, the number of buy-to-let mortgage products available to borrowers grew slightly to an average of 975.