I'm a buy-to-let landlord AMA

[accidentallandlord]

I own four flats in and around London - AMA.

I have been in my flat for 2 years and plan on staying at least another two years - yet the landlord won't consider any renovations and says I must improve the property myself.

If I move out, it would be repainted and repcarpeted before a new tenant moved in.

Would you think it fair that your current tenant should not get the same benefits a new tenant would. How often do you make improvements? and do you only you make them between tenants.

@safariboot As far as I know, the mortgage company doesn't insist on tenants not receiving benefits.

Some benefits I would be very happy to accept - especially if they could be paid directly to the landlord. I have previously had pensioners.

As mentioned in a previous reply, I need to be risk adverse, so it may be that the type of benefits received may make for a "riskier" let. If this is the case, rather than turn down the tenant, I would suggest either a guarantor (very common with students) or payment of rent upfront for x number of months.

If neither of those solutions fit the tenant, we are probably not a good match.

@rememberatime I have been in my flat for 2 years and plan on staying at least another two years - yet the landlord won't consider any renovations and says I must improve the property myself.

I guess this would depend on what you wanted; full redecoration of the property with Farrow and Ball paint, and a remodelled kitchen - no way. Peeling paint in the bathroom, yes of course.

I have just had exactly this. I popped over to see my tenants who are staying on and they had no complaints about the property. However, I noticed peeling paint in two places (they weren't bothered about it but I thought it looked unsightly) and when pushed, they mentioned a cupboard door was sticking. It was actually sticking so much that I could barely open it!

So I got that sorted for them, no problem at all. But a few years back, tenants told me they would really like the flat decorated in Elephant's Breath (Farrow and Ball) but were prepared to have a Dulux colour mixed up to match! As I had only redecorated the flat 18 months previously, and it was still in good condition, this wasn't something I was prepared to do.

Sometimes it's easier to do big jobs/redecorate between tenancies because there is no tenant to disturb. Some tenants get awkward about providing access (and understandably so - it's their home), or find work people intrusive. Also really big jobs like new kitchen/bathroom can mean the facilities are unusable for several days - some tenants might use this as an excuse to refuse to pay rent, so it can be easier to do it when the property is empty.

If your landlord is refusing to make repairs that are through wear and tear, I think you have a case to ask again. If you are asking for it to be made to your own personal taste, be prepared to do it yourself (and to return it to the presumably neutral colours the landlord has chosen at the end of your tenancy).

@rememberatime Sorry, meant to say, recarpeting isn't something I do as standard between tenancies. Most of my properties have wood floors (easier to keep clean). The one that does have carpets gets carpet shampooed between tenancies (professionally), but I have only replaced them once in the 7 years I have had the property.

I wouldn't consider needing new carpets throughout after a two year tenancy to be "fair wear and tear".

You've answered these questions really well OP. BTL landlords get such a bad reputation but we had a fantastic landlord before we bought who had three properties in the local area. He was fair, kept the properties in good condition and was very flexible about a rolling contract as we were buying. We need decent landlords who take pride in their properties.

@DreamingofSunshine Thank you. To me it makes sense to look after the properties. A happy tenant is more likely to stay, and a well presented property is more likely to attract a good tenant and/or attract a higher valuation.

Thanks OP. You have opened my mind a bit! As I said before, I can see why BTL is an attractive investment. I guess the problem is that everyone needs a home, people are going to have to pay for a home somehow and the current system means people who can afford a deposit greatly benefit over and above (and sometimes at the expense of) those who can't. But that's the system's fault, I can't really blame individuals for operating within that system. I think the new tax riles will help but what we really need is more social housing!

I e been watching rather a lot of Homes Under the Hammer. I think it is fantastic when developers buy rundown properties and transform them to let out. They are adding to the housing stock, not removing from it.

@CraftyGin I wish I could take credit for all those beautiful rags-to-riches homes, but I have never bought at an auction - when I was younger, I was too scared to take the risk. Nowadays, I think I would consider it, but probably only in a low-rise block of flats, where you can be reasonably certain there are no structural problems. But the new stamp duty laws mean that the profit margins are too fine for me to invest in any additional properties.

It really helps if you have a trustworthy builder, electrician, plumber etc. who will prioritise your work when needed.

Even replacing a kitchen or bathroom will probably mean that in any given year, you will make no profit on that property from rent alone (though obviously hopefully the value of your property will increase), so serious renovations need to be carefully considered.

So when the time came to buy somewhere together, I felt more financially secure keeping my old flat, and renting it out, in case the relationship went tits up.

😂 that’s not accidental! Nothing accidental about it. You made a deliberate choice to protect your interests.

@unadventuretime I couldn't agree more re: more social housing. Also government-controlled housing means that vulnerable people are less likely to fall foul of unscrupulous private landlords.

I'm also not a fan of the right-to-buy scheme. It removes social housing stock from the market - in London those who buy it at a reduced rate usually sell up as soon as they're allowed to and move out of London on the (often huge) profit, and it ends up back in the hands of private landlords. But I think I'm getting off topic!

@SisterNotCisTerf I see what you mean! Though the "accidental" refers to I never planned to make being a landlord a career or main income earner - it was a result of wanting to protect my interests, as you quite rightly say.

I guess that makes me an accidental cleaner because it’s not what I planned to be when I left school.

@SisterNotCisTerf Ha! Perhaps! Although this is just the username I chose for AMA, so it didn't identify with any of my other posts. A user asked a question about why I chose it - I wouldn't read too much into it. We could spend a long time analysing usernames, no?

Words mean things. You called yourself that because you think you are one.

@accidentallandlord

posted in AIBU but only one response. Have sold our property but renting & unsure when we will find the right family home. Always planned to buy a retirement property near family but could potentially to it now. If I bought a buy to let with small mortgage would it affect affordability for future purchase of family home.

@shoesoff1 Disclaimer: I am not a mortgage advisor (but I do have an excellent one if you would like to PM me!)

Whenever we have remortgaged in the past, the new mortgage company has always asked about all debts and outgoings - e.g. nursery fees, other mortgages, maintenance, school fees, credit card bills etc. If you could show that you (comfortably) could afford both mortgages based on your earnings, it wouldn't be a problem to get a mortgage BUT would reduce the amount you could borrow, as the mortgage you had on the BTL would be counted towards your financial commitments.

Having said this, I understand some lenders treat BTL mortgage commitments differently, so long as you can show 3 years' tax returns of the property making a profit, it may not be considered as a liability.

Worth speaking to an actual mortgage advisor though.

How much money do you earn from your properties?

Do you live close to the properties? How do you deal with issues like broken boiler etc?

Have you ever used Open Rent? We are thinking of doing using them when we rent out our home when we relocate for work.

What's your net profit each month after your mortgage payments and other associated costs have been covered?

Thanks “accidentallandlord”, will see an advisor but won’t be until back from hols & just musing. Thank you.

@tedx How much money do you earn from your properties?
@Slatternsdelight What's your net profit each month after your mortgage payments and other associated costs have been covered?

This can really depend on the month. So - for example - new boiler, redecoration plus a void (empty) period in a flat in the same month can make a loss of £3000 or more.

Similarly, a month where all rent is paid on time, no unexpected maintenance costs etc., then a decent profit comes in. But it's important to have decent cashflow in reserve, so that if a worst case scenario happens (for example all four properties have a simultaneous void period AND need new boilers - unlikely but possible), then you are able to weather the £10k plus storm!

If this sounds like I'm weaselling out of an actual answer, on an average month, I would say I make between £2-3k.

@texd Do you live close to the properties? How do you deal with issues like broken boiler etc?

We used to live much closer but have moved out of London. We're about an hour away. I am the last person who would ever attempt fixing a boiler. You need (legally) a Gas Safe engineer for that. I can arrange that just as easily by phone from an hour away as I can if I lived next door.

It does mean I don't get to "inspect" the properties as often as I probably should, but I generally trust my tenant, and we pay for a full inventory and checkout at the end of the tenancy.

I know of several people who (successfully) manage properties in London from where they live in Australia. I imagine the time difference doesn't help (if your emergency is in the middle of the night), but I guess I could also get a 3 a.m. emergency here too.

@loveka Have you ever used Open Rent?

No I haven't, but I know somebody who does, and who raves about it. The main thing that's stopping me from doing it is that you don't get an estate agent who shows tenants round. That's OK if you have very willing tenants who are willing to wait in for new tenants to either turn up or not - or indeed if you as the prospective landlord currently live in the property yourself, where it's a minor inconvenience.

I suspect most of my tenants would consider it an unfair imposition to be asked to show new tenants around, and we live too far away for it to be practical for me to attend every viewing.