An influx of new workers coming from overseas will further boost the residential buy-to-let sector, according to Nigel Terrington of Paragon.

Terrington refers to Home Office data which reveals that immigration into the UK in 2005 stood at 600,000, with many migrants arriving from Eastern Europe.

Furthermore, the government recently claimed that net immigration will add 6 million people to the UK population by 2031.

Research from the Council of Mortgage Lenders shows only 20% of immigrants become homeowners within five years of entering the UK. This means demand from immigrants could boost the private rented sector by 55,000 homes every year.

The UK residential buy-to-let sector has delivered the strongest returns of all the asset classes since the year 2000, according to fresh data.

Buy-to-let broker Landlord Mortgages, reveals that the buy-to-let property return on average 157% since the turn of the century.

Lee Grandin of Landlord Mortgages, said: “Investors who chose to stay close to home by investing in the FTSE 100 appear to have been burnt by the poor performance of the stock market and – in hindsight – might have done better by putting their capital in a savings account.