A couple on Homes Under The Hammer own 900 properties?!

[nc777]

How is this even ok?!

Just now on Homes Under The Hammer there was a couple who work in the family business with 30 other staff.

They buy 30 properties a month. Renovating 60 properties at any one time. They then rent them out and sell some on as investment "packages" I.e. several properties jumped together and sold on to an investor who then rents them out.

They're not even renovating to sell on, they're renovating to rent out.

900 properties???!!! That's 900 properties that could have otherwise been left for the local population to buy.

Am I the only one who finds this sickening?

@BananaBlue

MN March 2020: buying x2 packs of toilet paper is the height of selfishness, hoarding? you are the devil.

MN Nov 2021: LL owns 900 houses? So what, it’s a free market.

I have no skin in this game but I’ve described this before:

Dear friends mum (DFM) does RTB on council maisonette.

Gets ill, gives up work benefits pays IO mortgage of about £30k

Huge price increase. DFM sells to DF for £250k buys 3 bed semi cash in suburbs.

DF immediately rents it, tenants on housing benefit.

RTB probably Worth £400k
Semi worth £500k

Taxer paid most of mortgages.
Huge transfer of public cash to private hands.

Well, a) Mumsnet has a massive number of users, it's not massive groupthink but a collection of different people with their own opinions and b) it's a straw man argument anyway. Businesses can do some good for society by paying tax, employing people and generating wealth. You can't compare that to an individual stockpiling toilet rolls.

[quote nc777]@MargosKaftan erm... ever heard of Competition and Monopolising?

The former is good, the latter is bad. [/quote]
Depends, are the 900 properties all in the same area, so having a monopoly over the local rental market, or spread out, so there are other smaller landlord options? From what you posted originally, it read like the business involved buying across the country. So not creating a monopoly.

There are lots of problems in the UK rental market, but large professional landlords rather than small, amateur ones isn't a major one.

‘ Everything should be replaced every 15 years at least, to keep it fresh, new and up to standard.

Loads of homeowners don’t do that.’
^
You’re right, and it shows.
It’s not right to rent it in such condition.

Capital gains tax should be 40%, same as higher rate tax

@2bazookas

clocktapus Once they get past a certain number of properties, landlords should have to register for accreditation to ensure they're meeting required standards.\\

In Scotland, for years past , EVERY landlord has had to be approved and registered by the local council (even if they only let ONE property). The standards are stringent and penalties for unregistered LL's are financially crippling. So we /they comply.

England COULD do the same, but it won't unless/until voters in England exert enough political pressure on English MP's.

THIS is exactly why Scotland, Wales and NI demanded devolved government.

Er, that happens in England as well.

Actually I have properties in both countries and the registration in London is more stringent than in Scotland.

@Zenithbear

I don't see the problem. They are running a business, providing homes, employing people, paying tax and investing their money in property because it gives an income and potential for a great return. We are landlords and have three rental properties in good condition. We're looking for long term tenants with pets, are happy to let them decorate and charge a reasonable rent. The income will make up part of our pensions. We've worked and invested, never claimed benefits and now are happy to retire early for our efforts.

Completely agree

I was shocked when she said how many rentals they had. But did see they had done the rental up to a lovely standard. Wasn't it the one the estate agent said was a bit too high standard for the area?
If this is how they keep the rentals, and maintain them well. they are doing better than some housing authorities and all the slum lords you hear about.
Sad part is they are snapping up all the affordable homes in the area, so anyone hoping to buy and do up for their own home don't stand a chance if they are doing so many.

@Siriisatwat

There was a similar land lord where I used to live.

He wasn’t a good person, unfortunately, but how owned a lot of the rentals in the area. He used to lick and choose who he would rent to, making it impossible for some people.

I agree, it’s sickening.

You’re not in Kent are you?

No one should make a profit of someone's home.

2 properties is more than enough for anyone

Er, that happens in England as well.

Not everywhere though. Something like 55 councils according to one report - that's not very many.

Here there was a voluntary scheme and it's ending because of council cut backs.

@MrMrsJones

No one should make a profit of someone's home.

2 properties is more than enough for anyone

This is a silly comment. Houses wouldn't get built if there was no profit in them. Property is huge part of how the economy runs.

Kent - do you mean this lovely man?

www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/landlord-bans-coloured-people-curry-smell-racism-fergus-wilson-kent-a7653851.html%3famp

Rental properties are hugely important as at least 1/3 of the population rent their home. Without private landlords there would be a huge shortfall of available housing for renters- and professional landlords are running a business the same as any other business owner.

The queen is one of the biggest LL in the country along with the duke of westminster
These properties are the type you could not get mortgages for so first time buyers wouldn't be able to buy them - in this case no electric meter probably removed by previous tenant. If you watch these programs (I love property porn it gives you ideas about your own property) you will see most auction properties have something which means they are un mortgageable or difficult for any amateur to bring up to liveable standard
Many people in these areas would not have the kind of work that would enable them to get mortgages anyway & better a decent business minded LL brings them up to decent standard (which they did) & rent them out. Would you rather have someone do a bodge job
& sell or rent it to some unsuspecting family?

We shouldn't allow more than 1 property per individual. Or outside of principal residence it should be taxed so heavily so that its not actually profitable. Or does everyone love this feudalistic model of land/property owners vs the rest of plebs?

In recent years, buy to let property has become very heavily taxed, meaning that there is already much less profit in being a landlord.
Some landlords have sold up and more will probably follow if savings interest rates go up in the future.
Less rental properties/ shortage of rental properties will inevitably push up the cost of renting. In fact I think this is already happening in my area (South East)

@EdenFlower

Rental properties are hugely important as at least 1/3 of the population rent their home. Without private landlords there would be a huge shortfall of available housing for renters- and professional landlords are running a business the same as any other business owner.

How many of those are a choice though? It’s a fine balance between the private sector picking up the slack for students, people who need temporary houses for work etc, shortage of council homes and then it sucking up and pushing up the prices of houses.

We rent. I’d love a home though. We can afford the mortgage, we have a sizeable deposit. The loan to earnings just doesn’t add up though. When the average house price far exceeds the average wage their is an issue

they bought a flat and left the bathroom suite in just because it still worked.

That’s what people always used to do. My parents owned two houses in the space of 48 years and never replaced a kitchen or a bathroom. If it works, why fix it?

Less rental properties/ shortage of rental properties will inevitably push up the cost of renting
This has happened where I am, there is nothing to rent right now. So what there is, you can charge what your like.
The combination of house prices going through the roof and the tax hike has meant some landlords have sold up. I’m in an area of extreme development as well, so that has also made it a hot spot.

@ImUninsultable

Well, you obviously dont want landlords to have a large, nationwide business. Its business. Like any other business. if you've got the skill to manage it well and make the money needed to expand, then why not?

We dont have communism here. It's a business. People rent. So, what's wrong with people making this into a big business for themselves.

Or is it only ok if you only rent out one or 2 properties? Which doesnt actually earn you much money. So they also need to do other jobs and often they try to get round regulation or they simply dont understand what their responsibilities are

Are you a landlord with oodles of property by any chance?

@Blossomtoes I bet they did in their own home though, right?

could have been left for the local population to buy

Personally I think if the rental prices they are charging are fair, then this isn't a bad thing. My LL (I will never be able to buy) sets rents fairly and doesn't increase them with local market prices.
I find the idea of only local people being able to purchase houses so odd and entitled. Just because you grew up in an area should not give you priority to a home.

‘ That’s what people always used to do. My parents owned two houses in the space of 48 years and never replaced a kitchen or a bathroom. If it works, why fix it?’

Unless you’re saying this was their own home?

900 seems crazy, but I’ve lived in properties owned by both amateur and professional landlords and the experience with professionals was better with regard to maintenance, response times and available cash flows, which is to say that it was evident that maintenance was related to the cash flow of the amateurs, but handled promptly and efficiently by professional handymen with the pro landlords.

We need a solid stock of well managed and safe rental homes, both state owned and privately owned. If this company is doing it ethically and paying tax, I don’t see the problem. I think it’s just the scale that is so alarming, but I’m pretty sure my landlords in London were operating on that kind of level.

There is a way in which landlords create the very market they’re serving, though, Eden. Without limits on private rentals, people with access to finance can easily outbid those with limited funds. Who continue to rent instead.

There will always be a market for rentals. But would it be as big as it is if it weren’t so attractive to become a landlord?

If we had decent social housing and more reasonable house prices, it would be fascinating to see just how much of a market there would be for private landlords. It’s hard to imagine that it would not be vastly reduced. Proving that they are not providing a service to willing customers.

I honestly doubt that those who see no problem with this would feel the same if they were being priced out of home ownership entirely and forced instead to be the customer for someone else’s business. If home ownership was limited only to a small percentage of the population while the great majority had no option but to paid over large chunks of their salaries to the benefit of private landlords in exchange for homes they cannot decorate and can be evicted from on notice, do we really think society wouldn’t be in uproar over it?

[quote Staryflight445]@Blossomtoes I bet they did in their own home though, right?[/quote]
That was in their own home. They never owned a property they didn’t live in.