81% of tenants living in the Private Rented Sector (PRS) are satisfied with their current landlord, according to research commissioned by Paragon Mortgages.

The research carried out during the first quarter by BDRC Continental, asked 500 tenants living in the PRS for their views on their current tenancy and their future aspirations in terms of housing.

82% said they consider the property they rent to be their home and 70% said they perceived the rent they pay to be either good or very good value for money.

A fifth of respondents said in the long-term they plan to buy their own home and 35% said they expect to stay in the PRS.

The survey also revealed that 12% of tenants felt uncomfortable approaching their landlord about extending their tenancy agreement and 6% who had asked for a longer tenancy were refused. However, 57% said they had always been happy with the tenancy offered and 17% had asked for a longer-term and their landlord had agreed.

John Heron, Paragon’s director of mortgages, said: “The tenant research for Q1 is really interesting. It is important that we understand the world from the tenant’s viewpoint so we can continue to deliver products that support better standards in the PRS.

“There has been a lot of noise around the need for longer-term tenancies for some time and I think there is a common misconception that landlords are not willing to be flexible in the tenancies they offer. Our landlord research demonstrates that many are more than willing to extend terms and in 71% of cases it was the tenant who chose to end the tenancy and not the landlord.

“We are big supporters of offering longer-term tenancies and we were one of the first buy-to-let lenders to announce we would support the Government’s new model lease and allow landlords to offer 36 month tenancies to those tenants who need that extra security, as we believe this is our social responsibility.”