Landlords and tenants enjoy flourishing friendships

Renters might be missing out on climbing the property ladder but they are benefiting instead from companionable friendships with their landlords.

It would appear the stereotype of landlords being fearful fiends is just a myth, as a new survey has revealed one in five tenants aged 25 to 34 regularly socialise with the person who owns their home. Only one in three people do not get on with their landlord.

That is according to the Alliance & Leicester Mortgages Landlord Index, which also found one in ten of these tenants considered their landlord to be a friend.

The regular contact tenants receive from their landlords appears to be a contributing factor to the new revelations. The survey found nine per cent check up on their tenants at least once a fortnight.

It works the other way, too with 15 per cent of landlords considering their tenants to be friends and 17 per cent admitting they would buy a renter a card or present if they moved away from the property on good terms.

Stephen Leonard, director of mortgages at Alliance & Leicester, said: "Contrary to popular belief, landlords can be more friend than foe.

"It's encouraging that so many landlords and tenants enjoy a good relationship, as this can help ensure any issues of dispute relating to the rented property are settled amicably and on good terms."