There has been an increase in buy-to-let affordability searches of nearly a quarter over the last month as the average loan size offered by lenders has fallen, according to Mortgage Broker Tools (MBT).

Data from the broker research platform shows that the number of affordability searches for buy-to-let increased by 22% between September and October, while the average loan size offered by buy-to-let lenders decreased by nearly 24% between July and October.

Tanya Toumadj, CEO at Mortgage Broker Tools, said: “Affordability is a growing issue for buy-to-let borrowers, whether it’s for a new purchase or a remortgage, and rising rates have driven a 24% decline in the average loan size available to property investors. However, demand from landlords hasn’t disappeared and our data shows that, just as loan sizes have been falling, affordability searches have been increasing.

“There is huge appetite amongst buy-to-let investors for mortgage finance but finding the right deal has become much harder amidst the turbulent lending environment. This puts much greater emphasis on brokers having access to a research platform that can help them to quickly and easily identify the lenders that best suit the needs of their clients.

“MBT Affordability is the most comprehensive platform in the market, providing brokers with accurate calculations of how much their clients can borrow from a panel of more than 40 Residential and nearly 70 buy-to-let lenders, based on affordability and criteria. Results from all lenders are delivered in under a minute, with no approximations or estimates.”