What is a guarantor’s suitability and need?

admin    Uncategorized     agents

Hello everyone, I am being told, I think, some unusual things about the need for guarantors by a large national agency.

First of all they said there was no need for a guarantor if the tenant met the 2.5 times criteria and refs and the credit history were ok.

View Full Article: What is a guarantor’s suitability and need?

4 Obstacles Buy To Let Landlords Face When They Incorporate

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Incorporation of your Buy To Let Properties has its obstacles.

In this video, Alex Norian from Property118 and I will tell you the 4 obstacles Buy To Let Landlords face when they incorporate and how to tackle them.

View Full Article: 4 Obstacles Buy To Let Landlords Face When They Incorporate

Sell your Buy-to-Lets before the market drops at the end of the year

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This time last year we saw landlords across the UK in solution mode: paying off tax bills, going through incorporations, the mindset was that of weathering the storm. But a year on, there’s no denying that we’re likely heading for a huge property market crash. Recession is looming and, with all the regulation changes over the past few months, landlords are vastly realising that our property portfolios are becoming more hassle than they’re worth. It seems that now is the time to sell up and cash in to retire. But if we’re going to do that, it’s all about timing, so how much time do we have left?

With just 4 months to go until the end of the year, the very real threat looms that if we don’t sell up and get out now, we’ll be tied in to another 7 years of landlord responsibilities, waiting for the market to peak again so we can release ourselves of the property ball-and-chain machines we’ve created. So who should we turn to? What companies out there can genuinely sell part or entire property portfolios in less than 4 months for the high prices that we need to make this the smartest decision financially?

Landlord Sales Agency, a company founded by two private landlords, myself and Maz Saleem, who ourselves have both successfully sold our buy-to-let properties and cashed in, know exactly what to do to help other landlords. We also know that the rush to sell comes with its fair share of tenant issues, and are extremely sensitive to tenant needs.

Firstly, we have a list of buyers who will buy your properties without having to evict tenants. This dramatically cuts down the time it takes to sell, plus means that you can continue collecting rent all the way up until the actual sale. For those properties that require evictions, we personally help your tenants relocate, or help them financially to find a new place.

Secondly, no matter how many houses you have, or in what condition, we’ll take them all off your hands, and get you the highest price for your portfolios in less than 21 days. We sell entire property portfolios, or partial portfolios in bulk in one go.

And finally, we’ve got an extensive list of over 30,000 private buyers and relationships with the top property buying companies. Most of our portfolios sell within a week which is exactly what landlords need right now. We simply don’t have time to waste.

We’ll sell properties either in one go as a full portfolio or as single units, depending on your instruction. Unlike traditional estate agents, or other property buying companies, both methods are extremely fast. We work quickly to collect information about rent, tenant history, running costs and ensure all certificates are in place to guarantee the sale is not delayed. If any certificates are missing, we have a team of engineers, builders and experts who will get all the certificates and paperwork done for you. The stress is completely removed out of the sale, and seller involvement is kept to a minimum so you can relax knowing it’s in swift and extremely capable hands.

Furthermore, at Landlord Sales Agency we take our promise to ‘solve any landlord problem’ so seriously that, as a result of the number of enquiries we’ve received from landlords with cash flow problems, we can also use the equity tied into property to offer an interest free loan of up to £20,000 to be repaid on completion.

We know what it’s like right now to be a landlord who is thinking of selling, and who wants to release cash. We’re so confident in what we do, we can afford to go the extra mile to really help landlords get through, and get the highest possible price for their property portfolio before the market drops. We’ll also ensure we never compromise on the sale price no matter how much work your portfolio needs. We typically achieve 80 – 90% of the market value, and for that we cover all the costs and take away all the hassle that comes with selling the portfolio. We’re completely transparent, so you know exactly what we’re making. You won’t get a higher price for the service, and any company promising you 100% market value is hiding a huge list of costs that are going to come after the sale. That’s not the case with us. It’s what makes us different.

We’re here to help, and we understand that with just 4 months left to go until the year closes, now is the window for landlords to get out. It’s an absolutely crucial time, so place your hands in the experts and let us get the job done for you.

Put simply, there’s a reason so many LandlordZONE landlords have been reaching out to us, and it’s because we know exactly what it takes to help landlords like you, so talk to us today.

Contact Landlord Sales Agency:

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View Full Article: Sell your Buy-to-Lets before the market drops at the end of the year

Interest Rate Rise: Time for landlords to fight or take flight?

admin    Uncategorized     agents

Chris Norris, NRLA policy director on what the interest rate rise could mean for landlords, as the NRLA calls for pro-growth tax policies to encourage landlords to remain in the sector

The Monetary Policy Committee recently voted to increase interest rates from 1.25 to 1.75 per cent, biggest single hike for 27 years.  

On the one hand, a 50-basis point rise is a big deal. It means that every £100,000 of debt costs an extra £500 per year to service. Put another way, a typical member of the NRLA with two or three properties owes on average £330,000 and could face an extra £1,650 in interest payments because of the bank’s decision this week.  

However, context here is crucial. Most landlords, being interested in the long-term and always on the lookout for a good deal, fix their BTL mortgages for either two or five years.

At present only around a third of NRLA members have fixed or variable rate products, a large proportion of whom were already looking to lock in low rates before the recent hike.

So not every landlord is likely to see the cost of servicing their credit rocket overnight. 

Similarly, 1.75 per cent remains an historically low rate. The average UK base rate over the last 25 years, roughly the same period mainstream BTL loans have been available, was just over 4 per cent. 

So, nothing to be concerned about?

Not quite.  

This is very unlikely to be the final rise this year, especially with inflation forecast to hit 13.1 per cent. The Bank of England may well follow the example of the US Federal Reserve in hiking rates to 2.5 per cent or beyond and, whilst this would still be well below the rates of 4-5 per cent common in the noughties, one crucial factor has changed – to the detriment of landlords.  

Of course, BTL interest was once considered a legitimate business cost and could be deducted from taxable income.

This was prior to George Osborne’s 2015 attack on landlords’ finances. Landlords were somewhat sheltered from some of the financial shock associated with interest rate hikes, and crucially protected our bottom-lines.  

Without the ability to off-set finance costs (for landlords who own property personally, not via a limited company) higher interest rates will eventually eat into margins and will increase pressure on landlords to either increase rents or look elsewhere for a viable investment. However, the operative word here is ‘eventually’. 

Resilient landlords 

NRLA members are nothing if not resilient. In a recent survey 86 per cent told us that a 50-basis point hike would affect profits but not force any sales.  

In fact, this polling strongly suggests that the base rate would have to reach three to five per cent before significant numbers of landlords would consider disposing of property or leaving the market altogether. Although mitigating action would certainly be required in the meantime.  

What should landlords be doing? 

In the short-term, nothing drastic. The base rate remains historically low, as do available product rates.

Some landlords may choose to look at the structure of their business and holdings to see if converting to a limited company structure would be advantageous*, although professional advice should always be sought in such matters, and it will not be suitable for all.

Longer-term, the Government must act. We need to convince the next Prime Minister and his or her cabinet that the hostile treatment of private landlords and unjust way in which we are taxed at present will not only hurt our industry but add to the cost-of-living crisis as the price of accommodation rises to cover landlords.

It is essential landlords have the confidence to remain in the sector.

Data consistently shows demand for privately rented properties is increasing in many areas, outstripping the supply of rented homes available.

With 23 per cent of landlords planning to sell off homes in the next 12 months, action is needed now, to prevent rents rising further and council waiting lists growing ever longer.

The NRLA is calling on the next Prime Minister to take steps to encourage investment to meet the rising demand.

We want to see the additional stamp duty levy on the purchase of homes to rent to be scrapped, and a number of other fiscal policies.

In fact, experts at Capital Economics estimate that removing the stamp duty levy alone would see almost 900,000 new private rented homes made available across the UK over the next ten years.

What is the NRLA doing?

As we enter the final few weeks of the Conservative Party leadership race, the NRLA has written to the two leadership candidates’ campaigns teams, stressing the next Prime Minister must address the supply crisis in the private rented sector as a matter of urgency.

We will also shortly ask  for members’ help in lobbying policy makers. We will also request that they contribute  to original research on this issue. Please keep up to date via our website here.

View Full Article: Interest Rate Rise: Time for landlords to fight or take flight?

THIS is why student landlords are worried about Government’s periodic tenancy plans

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Student landlords are becoming increasingly worried about the Government’s plans to bring in periodic tenancies, as outlined within its renting reform White Paper.

LandlordZONE has spoken to three leading landlords who help run the Northampton Student Landlord Network, which has over 100 members.

It is urging student landlords from all over the country (the proposals will affect England and Wales only) to send in their views to the Government’s consultation on the proposed reforms before it closes on 19^th August.

Jacqueline Abbott (pictured), Wes Boswell and Richard Lee, who are all student landlords themselves, say Ministers need to wake up to the damage that their tenancy reform proposals will have on the sector, and in particular students, who will pay higher rents as landlords exit the sector.

This has already happened in Scotland where similar rules were introduced recently.

Abbott says her members are puzzled over proposals to treat purpose built student accommodation (PBSA) differently to traditional student HMOs or shared flats but it’s the changes to tenancies that are causing the greatest consternation.

“It feels to us as if the Government hasn’t realised that the student rental market is unique, and in many ways very different to traditional rentals, so the tenancy changes are going to impact landlords and tenants alike,” she says.

Problems

“The ‘one fits all’ approach of the White Paper needs nuancing if problems are going to be avoided.”

Lee agrees, saying the proposed changes to periodic tenancies are ‘very concerning’. “At the moment we sign agreements with our students that last between nine and eleven months and we’re both tied into that,” he says.

“But under the proposals, students will be able to give two months’ notice at any time.

So as a landlord you will only have two months’ certainty in the contract which, because of the dynamics of the market, means finding a replacement will be very difficult and, because of the expense of additional referencing and guarantor referencing, will make it less attractive.”

Tenants may also then give notice prior to the holidays, or it may persuade more tenants to drop out of their courses because there will be no financial consequences. “This will put more pressure on their housemates who will then have to fill the room or pay more rent,” says Abbott.

Need certainty

“We need contractual certainty so we can plan ahead with our property marketing and tenancy planning, while tenants know they have somewhere to live each year.” The Government’s proposals, the trio say, will put this business model in doubt.

“Recent UCAS figures said it expects an extra 100,000 students every year up until 2025 so it’s a crazy time to be tinkering with the student rental market model,” adds Lee. “Increases in PBSA construction will come nowhere near closing that gap.”

What’s the solution?

The Northampton Student Landlord Network says student accommodation should be identified using the students’ own course registration documents in tandem with local HMO and property licensing schemes so that they can be exempted from the periodic tenancy proposals, as PBSA sector is already going to be. "We already have to supply this information to get our Council Tax exemptions for the properties, so it's not a huge leap to use the same info again for this purpose."

View Full Article: THIS is why student landlords are worried about Government’s periodic tenancy plans

Media Support for Landlords?

admin    Uncategorized     agents

Ben Beadle of the NRLA has managed to have a much-needed article in support of the PRS published in the Telegraph on Monday 8th August.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/property/buy-to-let/next-prime-minister-needs-undo-damage-unleashed-landlords/
I don`t know how he managed it but with any luck

View Full Article: Media Support for Landlords?

LEGAL LATEST: Can the eviction of a disabled tenant ever be fair?

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A severely disabled tenant and his family have barricaded themselves into their home in a bid to prevent a controversial eviction.

Quadriplegic Harvey Cowe, 62, and his wife Sheree, 55, have lived at the house in Brittany Road, Hove, for 25 years after Brighton & Hove Council spent £200,000 on adaptations to accommodate his condition.

Their landlords, Anna and Dean Lashmar, now need to sell the £800,000 property to cover the cost of a £1.4m inheritance tax bill, reports The Argus.

In February, they gave the couple three months to raise the cash to buy it, so two family members sold their homes to help raise £500,000 and the council offered to match the amount with a mortgage.

However, by the time the Cowes had put together a £925,000 offer for the property, the deadline had passed by a week and the landlords had already started eviction proceedings.

Bailiff warrant

Now a court has granted possession and the couple report that bailiffs started drilling through the locks within minutes after the hearing.

Sheree Cowe (main picture) says Anna and Dean Lashmar have refused to negotiate further and stopped communicating. She adds: “The bailiffs said someone would return with the police and, regardless of my husband being bed-bound, they would arrest him, handcuff him and put him in the back of a police van.”

Speaking to The Argus in February, Dean Lashmar said he had no choice but to sell the home to cover an inheritance tax bill. “If they don’t leave very soon I will be going to prison because we owe a hell of a lot of money to my dad’s tax. We have been kind enough to rent to them for a very long time and they have had it very well. Unfortunately, we are not in a position any more to be able to support them, so we have to move on.”

The council says it is urgently trying to find alternative accommodation.

Read more: Legal advice for landlords guide.

View Full Article: LEGAL LATEST: Can the eviction of a disabled tenant ever be fair?

How do I identifying a freehold owner?

admin    Uncategorized     agents

Hello everyone, How do I identify the freehold owner of a 999-year leasehold, 2 bed terraced property?

I would like to buy the freehold.

Also, is it possible to get a ground rent of £1.60 per year to be removed from a leasehold property if it is not being collected?

View Full Article: How do I identifying a freehold owner?

Are student HMO rentals in decline?

admin    Uncategorized     agents

Hello everyone, My 4 bed Victorian terrace in Leicester, a big university city, has been rented to students for 7 years through an agency.

Last year was a struggle to rent and there have been no viewings for the next academic year starting in September.

View Full Article: Are student HMO rentals in decline?

Fears over winter rent arrears crisis as energy costs soar

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The soaring cost of energy is causing hardship for many families, and is only set to get worse. Landlords need to keep communicating with tenants – and ensure their rents are protected, says Richard Reed

View Full Article: Fears over winter rent arrears crisis as energy costs soar