Grampa

I am also leaning towards the same view.

A 2 bed flat has just been reduced in the area its a good price but the block of 8 units has a communal gas boiler for the heating and communal water bills. This means the service charge is £1800 pa to include those utilities. It also comes with 999 year lease and share of FH. My thoughts are, this has put off buyers and thats why it has been reduced even though the gas and water equates to about £100pcm of that service charge and means the true SC is 600 quid per year. But I'm thinking a similar "normal" 2 bed would rent for 750 pcm but if you advertise it at 850 no one would click on it to find gas and water were included. So I could advertise at the normal 750 and in the text below explain another 100 would be added to the rent for those utilities. Thoughts? Would you buy a property like this? Is it worth considering?

https://landlords.org.uk/news-campaigns/news/mandatory-five-year-electrical-safety-check-regulations-be-enforced-in-england?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=WebsiteNews&utm_term=&utm_content=&utm_campaign=News

If I were you I would consider your other options. These type of arrangement are notorious for the huge wear and tear on a property due the the high turn over of residents as the council put all their waifs and strays, problem tenants and (ex)druggies who they cant house normally. I have heard also of many cases that the properties are not returned in the same condition as promised. As councils are desperate for these type of properties I bet you could negotiate a high rent if you threaten to give notice. If a property is marketed correctly at the right price and in good order your void periods will be a minimum. Have you done the number crunching on what you would save on a lower mortgage rate, insurance premiums and higher rent. You can get really low normal BTL rates at the moment.

My understanding is as this is such a specialised market similar to HMO's the mortgage products available to you are going to be very limited and with not as attractive rates as "normal" BTL rates. But I assume you are getting a very very attractive rental income which is a lot more than if it was a normal rental which should go some way in compensating you for a higher mortgage rate. I would also guess you have the same problem sourcing building insurance and having to pay increased premiums. You could trying googling HMO mortgage providers because if they provide them there is a greater chance they will also provide what you are looking for or could point you in the right direction.

https://propertyindustryeye.com/eye-newsflash-queens-speech-confirms-new-measures-to-protect-tenants/?fbclid=IwAR31eeMNtg_SuGC1Hy49ozBY3x0pO3rSX5Mbf1aRFUvUKIvZpgef-DdgTzk

WOO HOO😀. Now lets get Breakfast Done😁

rr

He may be keeping any UC he is getting so apply to get it (if any) paid directly to you. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/universal-credit-landlord-request-for-a-managed-payment-or-rent-arrears-deduction Before you served the S21 did you make sure the tenant had the latest How to rent guide. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/how-to-rent Gas Safety cert Prescribed info re deposit EPC If not any court action will likely fail.

nope

But even if you dont check the previous landlords still getting the information as part of the whole referencing and decision making process it still gives you an insight to the potential tenant. Such as historically how long they stay in one place or if they move on fairly quickly. I'm not suggesting you make a decision based on that alone but taken in context with all the other info collated (such as bank statements) and a detailed application form will give you a fairly good insight to the person you are considering renting your property to. Its not fool proof but good referencing increases the chances of getting a good tenant. Also if something doesnt add up or feels right steer clear.

Yes you are right a residential landlord doesnt need to comply as it/if is classed as a non-housing act tenancy. These will be mainly be a lodger type arrangements where someone rents a room in a house (which the landlord lives in as well) and they shares one or both of the cooking/toilet facilities with others. Be careful you dont fall into the trap of thinking you are safe with what you think is a non-housing act tenancy but your tenants/lodgers have their own (not shared) cooking area , toilet and and are able to lock their own door. This would meet the criteria of a assured shorthold tenancy because they are self contained units. Some useful questions to put on an application form are: Next of kin + address (this can be an extra address to chase up ex-tenants + plus it helps if the tenant die) Vehicle detail (for the purpose of knowing whose cars belong to whom + plus it helps to know some of their assets if they default on their rent) Last 2/3 addresses and reasons for leaving and those landlords details for the purpose of getting a referance I could go on but just heading off to work

And so it goes on https://thenegotiator.co.uk/letting-or-selling-a-property-pollution-levels/

I would say £80 outlay to find a good tenant is good value. If you instructed a agent to find your tenant you would be paying a lot more. But they would be filtering out all the unsuitable tenants at a early stage before any referencing costs are incurred. They would do this by a combination of the below: Experience and first impressions of applicants . A very detailed application form filled out and scrutinized. References obtained from previous landlords and employers Seeing sight of bank statements which gives an insight to how they manage their funds. Then if happy with the above the final "paid for " references would be obtained to which would/could be cross referenced against the above and would/could highlight anything they are trying to hide which would then be dug deeper into. Even asking the question if they can obtain a guarantor and how they reply and the reasons why they cant tells a lot about a tenant. (though not having one doesn't make them a bad tenant) Trying to be a landlord on the cheap increases the risk of poor tenants and falling foul of the law and the financial penalties that incurs if you dont comply which is the area you appear to be creeping into.

Income is income if you take a simplistic view.

certainly looks that way

Boris Johnson has revealed several major shifts in government policy for the private rented sector and, as predicted, has put evictions at the centre of the General Election housing debate. In an article published by The Sun newspaper early this morning, Johnson has confirmed that the government will proceed with banning Section 21. “At the moment, renting a property can also be an uncertain and unsettling business, and the costs of deposits make it harder to move. We are going to fix that,” says Johnson. “A Conservative majority government will empower renters and give them greater peace of mind.” The policy has been opposed by landlords and many agents because it will push all evictions into the courts, making it harder and more expensive to eject tenants who default on their rent. But homelessness charities have welcomed the move including Shelter, whose chief executive Polly Neate says: “Reports that Conservatives plan to scrap Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions are hugely welcome. “If enacted, this would transform private renting for millions of people by providing them with stability and security.” Johnson has also said that if elected his government would bring in a system of transferable tenancy deposits called Lifetime Deposits which, it is claimed, is the Conservative Party’s attempt to reel in Labour-voting younger tenants.

😁Wheres the monster raving loony party when you need them? Got my voting card in the post today. Mmmm I wonder who I should vote for being a business owner and landlord? Its a toughie.😁

After we provided all the info there was no change to us and we dont need to get landlords to provide all this info other than the normal verification for every normal landlord which we did anyway.

I think you need another agent . We bank with Lloyds and were sent a request for a load of information which if not done correctly would have potentially meant doing what your agent is asking. All Lloyds customers with client accounts were sent a "Client Money Account Review" form and a questionnaire to fill out which covered numerous things such as how you verify tenants and landlords. How info was recorded and stored. Transaction motioning, Anti money laundering procedures, membership of which professional bodies etc etc yawn yawn. It was a pain to provide all the info and took a bit of time but once given and approved it was business as normal and I still have undesignated client accounts so the text of that link isnt correct/clear.

what sort of information?

I take a similar view and am still personally looking for good deals. One of the reasons I ask is I have an friend in his forties who has talked about obtaining BTL for a few years but didn't have the capital for the deposit. He is about to inherit his mothers flat (mortgage free worth approx 180k) and his first thought was to sell and then pay off his small personal mortgage and probably blow the rest. So I suggested as a option rent out his mothers house at 750pcm remortgage and pull out about 60k which would give him the down payment on 2 one bed flats which would rent out for 550 pcm each. Generating a gross income of 22k+ which with a quick calculation would generate at least 10k+ income after service charges, agent fees, mortgage payments. I know there would be tax, repairs empty period as well. Not a huge income I know but a foot in the door and enough income to fund each other if maintenance or other issues issues arise. I didnt know if I was bias being in the profession/industry and owning a number of small BTL myself.

With the knowledge you have gained so far being a landlord and all the changes about to be and have been brought it would you advise a friend/relation with a small chunk of money to invest in property to rent out? When I say a small chunk of money I mean enough to fund the 25% deposit on a small (1/2 bed flat) BTL or 3.

I guess the devil will be in the detail of the extra grounds and the speeding up of the eviction procedure they are proposing for the S8 process. As it is you can act (apply to the court for a hearing) for anti social behaviour ground 14 immediately after serving the s8 and for rent arrears 14 days after service. However for the mandatory rent arrears you have to already be 2 months owing and for g14 you would have to a had built up a decent dossier of anti social behaviour which can take months. You also have to attend or have an solicitor go to the hearing where with a s21 it is mostly not necessary.