Landlords see property values grow by £69.5 billion a year

Sainsbury’s Home Insurance is urging landlords to ensure that they have adequate home insurance as it estimates that the collective value of their rental properties has reached £641 billion. It calculates that in November 2006, the corresponding figure was £571.38 billion, but over the course of a year the value increased by around £5.79 billion a month.

Sainsbury’s Home Insurance for landlords provides comprehensive cover at competitive premiums. The policy, which is ideal for landlords with a single property or a small portfolio of properties, insures against loss of rental income of up to £20,000 and contents cover of up to £40,000. It is also one of the only home insurance policies for landlords to offer unlimited buildings cover.

Steve Johnson, Head of Home Insurance, Sainsbury’s Finance said: “The buy-to-let market has grown substantially in recent years. People have invested a huge amount of money into this sector and as a result of rising house prices many have seen the value of this investment grow substantially.

It is therefore imperative that landlords ensure their properties are covered by quality home insurance. Our product's unlimited buildings cover means that they don't have to worry about calculating the rebuild value of their property and are safe in the knowledge that they won't be underinsured."

Sainsbury’s Finance’s analysis of market data reveals that there are around 2.76 million properties belonging to landlords in Britain. Between November 2006 and November 2007, London landlords saw their properties rise in value by around £24.44 billion, which was the highest rise in the country compared to £942.72 million in Wales, which was the lowest.

The buy-to-let market has grown dramatically in recent years and between the first six months of 2004 and the same period in 2007, the number of buy-to-let mortgages increased by a staggering 98%.

Sainsbury’s Buy to Let Insurance offers a simple telephone application process and the following features and benefits:

Unlimited buildings cover
Two choices of contents cover - up to £40,000 for furnished properties and £5,000 for those that are unfurnished. High risk items are insured up to £5,000 in furnished properties – this includes TV and audio equipment, pictures and paintings
Loss of rent income up to £20,000
Unlike some home insurers, Sainsbury’s does not apply charges for customers paying their premiums by direct debit
Maximum no-claims discount of up to 30% as standard
No-claims discount protection

For further information, visit sainsburysbank.co.uk.