to be annoyed when people view our house as a buy-to-let

[NoWayPedro]

DP and me are selling our house; it's a nice starter home for a couple or someone with a small family. We live in the South-East and its not cheap, not that it is anywhere these days. I realise we are v lucky, several of our friends (teachers, IT professionals etc.) can't afford to buy and would love to live in our house.

As much as I want to move, I really don't want to sell to a but-to-let. They swan in, all 'I'm buy to let don't you know' blah blah and only ask questions around how cheap the maintenance would be for the most possible returns.

Really pisses me off - AIBU?

[DeWe]

I know where you're coming from. When we were selling we grew to recognise buy to let very quickly...
Walk in, barely glance round, say "very poor condition", put in ridiculously low offer. At one point one put in an offer that was only just over 50% of the value-and we were selling cheap anyway. They'd say they were cash buyers, so expected to get it cheap.
They would have been able to rent the house out for about double the morgage per month assuming they'd needed 100% morgage too.

So ime the buy to let don't raise the value of the house.

We did in the end sell cheaply to a lovely lady who is still living there. At £60K more than the highest buy to let offer. That being about 1/3 the price of the house she paid for.

[dogsandcats]

YANBU. What is the use of principles to anyone, if they dont follow through with them?
Else it is all just meaningless talk.

Only thing I would add is that you can end up selling your house to the nicest people in the land, but they, for whatever reason, may end up reselling at any point in the future to whomever they want.

[WafflyVersatile]

YANBU. BTL is a fucking blight on communities.

[Fluffy1234]

Even if a family/couple buy it the house could still end up being rented out. I know lots of people that have become accidental landlord/landladies.

[propertyNIGHTmareBEFOREXMAS]

Yabu. Go for the most money you can and to fuck with who buys it. Fingers crossed for a bidding war if it is a desirable letting property.

[Confuseddd]

Why is it so inconceivable to some posters that you might forgo profit to do the right thing? I hate the attitude that business and profit trumps any other consideration. Some people think it's naive to help others, which is pretty sad for them. Maybe a bit less bare-faced greed in the property Market would be a good thing!

Special subject, are you a buy-to-letter? No, of course renting out a property is not a crime, but blocking the chances of a family owning a property in order to secure oneself an 'investment' is one of those activities that seems morally dubious to me.

[elfycat]

I bought a BTL house a few years back because I fell in love with the property. I've probably lavished a bit too much on it considering it's a business investment and once my tenants leave I will refit the kitchen/ diner because my lovely house deserves better.

I can picture myself living there when I am older - it's part of a converted barn and doesn't have a garden but there's a large park metres away.

Just because a BTL buyer has their business head on doesn't always mean they won't love your house.

[QueenOfIndecision]

i sold my house years ago 2003 but loved it. two people both offered the asking price on the same day (in retrospect i think i cuold've got more for it but anyway). one was buy to let the other was a young couple wanting their first house (it was a 2 bed terrace in a midlands city). i instructed the estate agent to sell it to the couple. i agree with others, it is important to help people get on the property ladder. lord knows the gap betwen the people who can afford lots of homes adn those who can't afford one is too big in this country.

[complexnumber]

I can sympatise as your house reflects a lot about you. I felt more than a little sad when I drove past my childhood home to find it demolished and turned into flats.

But, I think you need to try to remove the emotion and stick to reason.

[aldiwhore]

YANBU, if people cared more about who bought their houses then there would be fewer problems with empty towns in some of the more desirable areas of the country.

Saying that, if you need to sell y0ou need to sell, a buyer is a buyer.

I guess you do have to put your own needs above everything else, but if you can afford (time wise and cash wise) to hold out for someone you'd like to buy your home then I don't have an issue with that at all.

[Rain1975]

Yanbu we have just sold our house as a part exchange so when viewers came it was no longer my house to sell. Still hope a family with small children and dogs buy it. We loved living here and I want people to love it as much as we have.

[Unami]

Um, yes, I know that renting a property for profit is not a crime. As I said to the OP, if convenience and profit are the most important factors to you in this exchange, then fair enough.

But I don't think it's unreasonable to have reservations about the wider social impact of a financial transaction. Nor do I think it's unreasonable to express a preference for a buyer who wants to use the house as their principle residence.

No, it's not quite the same issue as holiday homes, but I thought the debate around holiday homes was interesting in that it's an issue that many people want to see government intervention in, when it actually could be tackled quite directly by people exercising their ability to choose local buyers over investors.

Participating in a free market doesn't always have to mean selling to the highest bidder.

[specialsubject]

'selling to a buy-to-let landlord will only take it off the market for anyone else looking for a family home too.'

yes, because the evil devil landlord will of course not rent it to anyone and let it rot empty.

There is a difference between a holiday property and a long-term rental - the latter mean people live in the house year-round, they just pay rent to a landlord rather than mortgage to a banker. You do know that renting a property for profit is not a crime, for either purpose?

OP, feel free to be fussy about buyers. Of course someone buying to let won't have a chain, won't worry about moving dates and may well be a cash buyer as any other way doesn't make much sense now. And anyone who buys a house without asking about running costs is fairly dumb.

[pippop1]

Look at it another way. If your potential new buyers are not doing buying-to-let but are planning to live there, what you are saying to them is ""This house is not good/big enough for me, but actually it's OK for you".

That's not that nice either.

Selling and buying houses is v stressful.

[Oodsigma]

We've just sold my Grandads house to a couple rather than BTL for £5k less. The couple were chain free too.

We didn't have to buy anything else with the money though so not the same pressure as when you are trying to move up the ladder.

[Unami]

YANBU

It's completely up to you who you want to sell your house to. Buy-to-let landlords do a great deal to elevate house prices beyond the means of ordinary people and families. As you say, many of your friends would love to live in a house like yours, and while they personally may not be able to afford it, selling to a buy-to-let landlord will only take it off the market for anyone else looking for a family home too.

I was listening to a radio program about the problem of so many homes in areas like Cornwall being sold as holiday homes and basically destroying the community. People had proposed various measures to disinsentivise the purchase of holiday homes such as local taxes, but then someone suggested that the blame also lay, in part, with the people selling their houses - as they could choose the sell their homes to local families for a lower price if they so wished to, but chose not to. I think there's probably a great deal of truth in that.

Buying and selling a house is not a value-free exchange. If you consider the exchange to have social and ethical implications beyond your personal interests, then there is really no reason to discount them, other than convenience or profit. If that's what matters most to you, then fine, but YANBU to have reservations.

[NinaHeart]

I do know how you feel as I felt that way when I sold my last house. and a local vicar wanted to Buy to Let (and keep my lovely curtains - no chance)

It was bought in then end by a family of three women (two sisters and their mum) who apparently, turned out to be dreadful occupants. I'm not sure my old neighbours (who are still friends) ever really forgave me!

So you don't know that the people you sell to won't turn out to be rotters.

[TheRealFellatio]

also, if you've sold to a BTL investor that puts you in a very strong position as a purchaser as they may let you stay in your old house and pay nominal rent on a month by month basis while you look for somewhere else, and you can approach a new property as a cash/no chain buyer, and therefore negotiate a better price for a quick, trouble free transaction.

[CandidaDoyle]

We encountered a seller like yours Jinsei, I had dressed my DDs in the best handed knitted cardis that granny had made, which really endeared the vendor. They then fell over themselves to accept our very cheeky offer (which was still double what they paid, so l didn't feel too guilty)

[Finola1step]

Forgot to add.. Completed my house purchase in December. Took over a year and three houses to actually see one through to completion. All because of other people in the chain mucking about, changing their minds, getting their finances wrong and so having their mortgage offers withdrawn. The housing market is tough everywhere. Chains are falling apart very easily. A buyer who is in the buy to market is far more likely to have the money sorted and would therefore be a much safer bet for you than a first time buyer whose mortgage company can suddenly start asking awkward questions.

[TheRealFellatio]

Ok so if you are annoyed with BTL landlords on principle then I do hope you will remember those principles, and turn them down, even when they offer you a good price with a quick sale and no chain.

[TheChaoGoesMu]

I sold my last house as a buy to let. I didn't care who bought it, I needed to sell it.

[Finola1step]

You can't be too emotional in the house selling process. Get the agents to do the viewings. Agree to only be present on any second viewings. The good thing about a buyer who is going to let out is that they have no emotional attachments to a property they need to sell in order to buy yours. So there will no pulling out the day before exchange because they have decided that they don't want to move after all and such nonsense.

[Tryharder]

My parents bought a house very cheaply because the owner (who also owned the one next door) didn't want to sell to developers who would have built about 5 houses on the one plot (small bungalow, lots and lots of land).

I agree with you by the way, at least the principle of it! However, you should do what you do to get the best price possible.

[Jinsei]

YABU, but I love sellers like you! :) We bought our house for an absolute bargain because the owner had only had offers from BTL buyers and didn't want to sell to them. The agent insisted that she would reject our offer because she had already rejected several higher offers, but she accepted it - she later explained that it was because she liked us and wanted to sell to a family.

It was an expensive preference for her, but absolutely fine by us!! :)