Landlords are committing the equivalent of almost four working days every month to managing their rental properties as operational and compliance pressures continue to mount across the private rented sector.
New research from Pegasus Insight shows that landlords spend an average of 31 hours per month overseeing their portfolios.
For those with 11 or more properties, the time commitment rises to 78 hours per month – close to 10 full working days.
The findings, drawn from Landlord Trends Q4 2025 data, underline the growing complexity of portfolio management, particularly for larger and more structured operators.
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Time invested is highest among landlords with buy-to-let mortgages, HMO properties and bigger portfolios, reflecting the additional regulatory, financial and administrative burdens attached to scale.
While 57% of properties are managed with some level of letting agent support, overall time commitments remain broadly similar regardless of agent involvement.
Oversight responsibilities – including compliance, maintenance coordination and financial management – continue to sit largely with the landlord.
FINANCIAL OUTLAY
On average, landlords estimate that between 23% and 24% of their gross rental income is absorbed by running and maintenance costs, highlighting the dual impact of time and capital pressures.
Mark Long (main picture, inset), managing director and founder of Pegasus Insight, says: “There is often a perception that letting property is a relatively passive activity, that landlords just sit back and let the cash roll in.
“But the data tells a different story. For many landlords, particularly those operating at scale, portfolio management represents a significant monthly time commitment.”
GREATER COMPLEXITY
And he adds: “As regulatory and operational requirements have increased, so too has the administrative and compliance workload.
“Larger landlords, those whose properties are financed using a mortgage and those operating HMOs are naturally exposed to greater complexity, and that is reflected in the hours they invest.
“The combination of rising time demands and ongoing cost pressures reinforces the fact that the Private Rented Sector is becoming increasingly professionalised.
“Successful landlords are devoting both capital and active management effort to sustain the performance of their investments.”
