Good News for first time investors
March 15th, 2011
There has been a very interesting change of attitude by lenders in the buy-to-let market. Historically lenders have always favoured the established landlords, those with a history of buy-to-let borrowing and have build up a good sized portfolio.
Since the beginning of the year lenders have begun to change their lending patterns and started to look more favourably at the first time landlord rather than the professional landlord. Not surprisingly these new buy-to-let customers are borrowers who have large credit balances earning very little interest who have become very disillusioned with standard bank accounts and are now looking for alternative ways of getting a decent return on their investment.
With the lenders easing many of the restrictions around buy-to-let mortgages such as deposits, interest rates and other criteria thus making them more affordable and readily available, coupled with the demands on the rental market increasing month on month and rental income providing a better return on investment than your standard bank accounts there has never been a better time to become a property investor.
With up to a 15% return on your investment Happy Homes Investments can help you get your savings working for you again. Call us today for a free consultation.
Private landlords turn down young tenants
February 10th, 2011
The National Landlords Association have surveyed a third of its members who let to tenants on housing benefit. Of this group, 31% said they would reduce such tenancies now, while less than 1% said they planned to increase such tenancies during 2011.
Many private landlords had expressed their concerns even before the General Election, about the Government’s plans to pay housing benefit to tenants rather than straight to landlords since this had caused a growing rental arrears problem.
One of the key changes planned for next January will be to encourage younger tenants to live together in shared properties rather than more expensive one-bedroom flats. The Shared Accommodation Rate currently limits the benefit a single person under 25 can receive to the average rent charged for a room in a shared house.
There are also not enough shared properties to accommodate the increased demand the Coalition’s proposed cuts will trigger; Shelter says 87% of local authority housing officers it surveyed already had difficulty finding places for under-25s on the shared accommodation rate. It says this shortage will become acute when the net includes those up to the age of 35.
The Government has defended its proposals on several grounds. One argument is that the cut in benefits might encourage more families to take in lodgers under the rent-a-room scheme, where some of the income is tax-free. Steve Webb, Liberal Democrat Pensions Minister, has said, “As young people start to realise they cannot get benefit for a flat on their own and start to look for lodgings, another family who may have lost income through redundancy might wish to let their spare rooms.”
At Happy Homes Investments we always advise using a fully qualified and reliable letting agent to ensure the reliability of your tenant.
Finding your tenants.
December 14th, 2010
The first question any tenant will ask is “how much is the rent each month”. This is one question you need to give a lot of thought to, charge too much and your property will be stood empty and this is the last thing you need when you have got a mortgage to pay. Charge too little and you are not fulfilling you investment properties potential.
There are various way you can go about setting your rent many of them have pitfalls so don’t just go with the one source. So where can you turn to
Letting Agents.
The Letting Agent will have a vested interest in what rental you charge don’t forget they take a percentage each month
Adverts in the paper.
These can only give you a guide line, and can be between £50-£75 per month out; specifics of decoration and facilities in the property can demand a higher rental
Estate Agents.
Like the Letting Agent they have a vested interest in selling the property and can easily inflate any potential rental income
Personal Viewings.
This is the only sure fire way of putting your rental into the correct bracket. Take time out to go on a few lettings viewings preferably in the same street as your own property, compare the fixtures and fittings along with the decoration against that of your own property and an absolute must is to look at how long this property is taking to be let, if this is over 4 weeks then it is probably overpriced.
Don’t forget to review your rental charges on a regular basis and ensure all rises are suitable for the type, locality and condition of the property
Beware of the overspend.
November 10th, 2010
Overspends can happen so easily if either you or your builder haven’t put enough thought into the refurbishment budget from the get go. In fact some builders have been known to deliberately over estimate in order to increase their income from a job. Be aware of this possibility and do your sums and research so you are confident you are getting value for money.
Beware of getting emotionally involved; you’re not going to be living there. This is a business not a home. It is so easy to spend £5,000 extra on “creative luxuries” on a job and at the end discover you’ve not added a single penny to the achievable rent. What a waste.
Also think about time overruns. There is nothing that annoys tenants and letting agents more than being told a moving in date, only to find the refurbishments aren’t complete by the date you set. So the tenant is left either homeless or living on a building site.
Beware also of under spend; cheapest isn’t always the best value for money. You want that new kitchen to last 10 years otherwise you’ll have to spend more money replacing it every five years or so. Tenants don’t like living in properties that start to “fall apart” and they are likely to vote with their feet, leaving you with an empty property, no income and the mortgage to be paid. A false economy if ever there was one.
A great way to avoid many of these pitfalls is to use a quality reputable company such as www.buildingservices.com or www.buildingsolutionsmidlandsltd.co.uk
Working well with your solicitor
September 14th, 2010
In June we looked at building a relationship with the Estate Agent but perhaps more important than your relationship with the Estate Agent is your relationship with the Solicitor, don’t get me wrong, when a solicitor is working for you they are Working For YOU, but what you want to ensure is yours is the first file they pick up in the morning AND the last one they look at in the evening. If your relationship is not as strong as it could be this could lead to the following: -
Deals taking longer than they need to.
A solicitor can if they work at it get a deal through to completion within 2 weeks (Happy Homes record is 8 days)
A solicitor can also delay a deal by up to 5 months either by good negotiation for your benefit or dragging their heels to your detriment.
Deals falling through.
If a solicitor is not chasing all the parties involved it is possible for the deal to quickly sour and leave you without the property
Hampering your relationship with your letting agent.
Letting Agents like to have a firm date they can pass on to prospective tenants, if your purchase is delayed this delays everything down the line, you could risk loosing good tenants as the Letting Agent will soon find them another home.
The vendor taking an alternative offer.
If things are taking longer than expected, the Vendor rightly or wrongly could start looking at other offers being put in front of them, again this could result in you loosing the property.
There are a few easy steps to take to help you build a good relationship with your Solicitor: -
Use them as much as possible
Sit down with them at the start and outline what you are expecting from them and what they are expecting from you.
Get all the necessary forms from them in advance; this can be done before you even instruct them to work for you.
Try to get The Vendor to use a solicitor your solicitor deals with on a regular basis, this way each will know what the others requirements are and you may even be able to speak to both solicitors to move the process along (this does need the vendors permission to do this)
Use a recommended solicitor that knows the Buy to Let market, a good one Happy Homes works with and can strongly recommend is www.Fraserbrown.com
Building a relationship with the Estate Agent
June 14th, 2010
Estate Agents have a legal and moral obligation to act in the best interests of the vendor; after all they are the ones paying their fees. No Estate Agent should ever advise a client to accept an offer which could be detrimental to them so whatever your relationship with them do not expect this. Where a good relationship with the Estate Agent can be invaluable is: –
In a rising market.
When house prices are rising and there is a shortage of property on the market, the vendor may have accepted your offer but if you have not exchanged contracts any higher offers that come in the Estate Agent must pass these onto the vendor. A good relationship could see the Estate Agent let you know when if any offers are received, or helping you re-negotiate your offer and making sure your offer is the one the vendor finally accepts also the Estate Agent will be more receptive to progressing the sale at a quicker pace to exchanging contracts by making sure any obstacles in the way are dealt with rather than being left on the desk.
In a declining market
When house prices are falling and there is a glut of properties on the market, you will find Surveyors will start to down value properties, your relationship with the Estate Agent will become invaluable if you find yourself in the position where your purchase has been down valued and you need to re-negotiate your price down, remember the Estate Agent must at all time act in the vendors best interests, so your relationship with the Estate Agent is vital if you want them to convince the vendor that your offer is the best offer they will receive.
Over the years Happy Homes have built up excellent relationships with Estate Agents and this enables them to offer, exchange and complete on the purchase of properties within excellent timescales reducing the amount of worry and hassle for its clients.
How to Rent out Your Home
February 26th, 2010
The property slump, recession and the phenomenon that is Buy-to Let has led to more and more accidental landlords. These are home owners who for whatever reason have decided to rent out their property rather than sell. Here are a few things they had to consider:
1] Do your maths: Do all your figures add up? Does your rental income cover all your houses outgoing costs? Don’t forget your tenants will be paying the utility bills and Council Tax.
2] Go it alone or get an Agent: letting Agents take the hassle out of renting out your property; they will find a tenant, collect the rent, arrange repairs and manage the rental from start to finish. What they will also do is charge a fee, and this can be anything from 5%-15%. Do your homework and choose a good agent not a cheap one.
3] Let your current lender know: You need your lender’s permission to rent out your property. If you do not inform them, you could be in breach of your mortgage terms and conditions. The majority of Lenders are not going to object, so what have you got to lose.
4] Know the rules: It is vital to know the rules and regulations, now you are a landlord. This may not be an investment property but you may still be liable for tax. Don’t forget you are now responsible for gas, electricity and fire regulations, Energy Performance certificates, Tenancy Deposit Scheme, etc.etc. etc.
5] Don’t forget Insurance: Your buildings insurance will be invalid as soon as you rent out your property, so this will need to be taken out as a landlord, and don’t forget to get cover if your tenants default on their rent.
Happy Investing!
2009 arrears lower than 2008
February 20th, 2010
LSL Property Services have released figures showing that rental arrears were much lower during 2009 than the previous year, despite the recession. This was totally contrary to all forecasters’ expectations that arrears would rise.
Figures show that 11.7% of rents were not paid by the due date, down from 14.5% in 2008, with 12.5% of rent remaining unpaid as at 31st December 2009 as opposed to 15.9% for the same time last year.
The expectations were that tenants would fall behind with rent as the recession took hold and people lost their jobs, but with the unemployment figures not reaching the levels many analysts anticipated, and landlords and letting agents keeping a close eye on rents, problems have been spotted early and dealt with promptly.
Happy Investing!
Terraced houses are a hit with landlords
February 2nd, 2010
Research carried out by Paragon Mortgages shows that 10% of professional landlords plan to expand their property portfolio during the first three months of 2010. When asked what type of property they would be looking for, terraced property was by far the most popular choice.
Almost 66% of those surveyed said that a terraced property would be their first choice, with semi-detached properties coming in second but way down their priority list, bringing up the rear were flats and detached houses.
Terraced houses have for many, many years been the property of choice for most professional landlords as they are usually sited in good solid rental area’s most are very well built and can offer a good base for refurbishment, priced reasonably they offer the landlord a good Return on Investment and are well liked by a wide range of tenant types.
Happy investing!
Naughties see biggest rise in house prices
January 21st, 2010
House prices in the UK have risen by a massive 273% since 1959 according to figures published by the Halifax. The last 10 years alone have seen house prices rise by a huge 62%, just beating the Eighties where growth was 61%. The accolade for the worst performing decade goes to the nineties where property prices fell by 22% in real terms.
The jump in housing prices during the eighties can be attributed to the introduction of the Right to Buy Scheme, which also counted for the fall in the number of people in rented accommodation from 33% of the population in the sixties, to just 9% by the start of the nineties, however the rental market is making a come back with that figure now rising to 14% by the end of 2008.
Happy investing!