For some homebuyers, the kitchen is the deal maker. For others, it is the number of bedrooms, the school catchment or the distance to the railway station. Yet for a sizeable group of buyers, the garden matters just as much as the house itself. Across Shepperton there are 90 homes with large gardens.

Keir Starmer’s resignation will not automatically cause house prices to fall or mortgage rates to rise, but it does inject another dose of uncertainty into the UK property market

Since the mid 2000s, Britain has been told the same bad news housing stories. Young people have been locked out of homeownership. Deposits are impossible to save. Mortgage rules are too strict. And ‘Generation Rent’ is now permanent. According to the narrative by the newspapers, younger generation homeownership has collapsed.

The rental market remains active in May 2026, but conditions are changing. Demand is still strong, rent growth has eased, and tenant expectations are rising. Here is what landlords should be thinking about now.