Dwelly has completed 10 acquisitions during 2026, taking its portfolio to more than 15,000 properties under management. The company's latest deal saw it acquire London sales and lettings agency Paramount Properties, adding another 1,100 fully managed properties.
The acquisition follows deals for Goodwin, Lime Property, Albery Tyson, Elliot Oliver, Move, Eden Harper, AP Morgan, Settio and Shaws. Dwelly has also secured $170m (£129m) in new funding from investors including EQT Growth and General Catalyst, which it plans to use to support further acquisitions and investment in AI.
PRS share has almost doubled
Analysis by the company suggests privately rented homes accounted for 12.5% of combined owner-occupied and privately rented housing stock in 2000. Dwelly puts that figure at 23.3% today. In absolute terms, it says the number of privately rented homes has risen from 2.089 million to 5.030 million over the same period.
The company believes the sector is changing rather than simply shrinking. Some smaller landlords have exited amid higher taxes, regulation and operating costs. However, Dwelly argues those who remain increasingly need professional support. It expects the Renters' Rights Act to accelerate that trend as landlords face greater compliance requirements.
More regulation, more need for agents?
Dwelly believes the changing regulatory environment could increase demand for professional property management rather than diminish it. Its argument is that landlords will increasingly rely on experienced letting agents to navigate legislation and manage their properties.
For agents, that creates a different challenge. Local knowledge and landlord relationships remain important, but operational efficiency becomes increasingly critical as compliance workloads grow. Dwelly is betting that technology can address part of that problem. Its AI platform aims to automate administrative work around compliance, maintenance, communications and day-to-day property management. The company says the intention is not to replace letting agents. Instead, it wants to free staff to spend more time advising landlords, supporting tenants and managing client relationships.
'A market to avoid?'
Sam Humphreys, head of M&A at Dwelly, said: “If you judged the private rented sector purely by the headlines, you’d probably conclude it’s a market to avoid. Our view is very different.
“We think the industry is becoming more professional, not less attractive.” He said landlords remaining in the sector would require more support as the regulatory environment becomes increasingly complex.
“When you step back and look at the long-term picture, Britain’s rental market has almost doubled as a proportion of the housing market over the last 25 years,” Humphreys added. “That’s not a shrinking sector – it’s one that’s matured significantly and continues to play a vitally important role in meeting housing demand.”
AI and acquisitions
Dwelly’s acquisition strategy rests on combining established local agencies with its technology platform. “Our acquisition activity this year reflects that belief,” Humphreys said. “We see enormous long-term opportunity in helping great local agencies become even stronger.”
He added: “For us, AI isn’t replacing the letting agent. It’s enabling the professional letting agent to become even more valuable.” With 10 acquisitions, more than 15,000 managed properties and $170m of fresh funding, Dwelly is making a sizeable bet that greater regulation will strengthen the case for professional letting agents rather than weaken it.
