to consider becoming a HMO landlord?

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I've recently been fortunate enough to get a job that allows me to put a substantial amount of money into savings.
My job requires me to live with my employers so I don't incur any living costs, at present I'm not a home owner.

The simplest investment strategy that I'm aware of seems to be property investment and I recently saw a town house near where my parents live that has been converted into a HMO.
It's beautiful, large rooms with high ceilings - each bedroom has an ensuite and there is a good amount of communal space.
I would likely target graduate students of the local University.

I'd set aside a good chunk of the income to maintaining the property (I've lived under "slum-landlords" who spend no money on their houses) and aim for a higher end market.

HOWEVER the general consensus on Mumsnet seems to be that Landlords are evil, HMO landlords in particular as though they are the cause of overpriced housing/over population.

AIBU to consider changing my plans based on the fear that people will judge me for being a landlord?

In an ideal world people would be able to afford homes and there would be social housing to fill the gap.
Unfortunately we aren’t there so we need good landlords who care about their tenants.

How will you deal with upkeep? Do it yourself or hire an agency?

The other things to watch is that there is so much student accommodation being build in the city where I live that lots of hmo landlords are having a hard time to compete.

I wouldn’t worry about what ransoms in the internet thought.

Having been a student, a landlord, and an adult, I can confirm that student tenants are utter entitled horrible cunts to live beside and your neighbours will HATE you.

They'll cost you a fuckloads in stress, repairs and complaints, honestly. They'll be vomiting and cackling and running up and down the street at all hours. I had to step over a pile of vomit to leave my flat and go and have my baby. We moved out a month later.

The good news is, an HMO is seemingly irrevocable!

Go rent to some adults. You know, who have jobs and get up at normal hours and don't turn your street into a war zone.

@TransVisionTerf Damn. Noted!

Or post-grad/PhD/mature students only, maybe? When I was a letting agent, we had several landlords who would only accept these students.

I don't think all HMO landlords are bad, just the ones that get greedy and start converting living space into more bedrooms and don't maintain the property.

However!

I would really really not recommend your first experience of being a landlord to be with a HMO.

Have you any idea how much work it will be dealing with multiple tenants and all the additional legislation you will be required to work around?

If I were you I would buy a nice small house or flat and find a nice couple or family to live in it and leave the HMOs for the professional landlords that know what they're doing. Great advice (and some laughs) on this blog here www.propertyinvestmentproject.co.uk

I don't think students and high end market go together...

i realise I sound quite bitter (I'm not, I was a landlord for a bit myself) but living with students is a nightmare. If the entire street is full of students, you could consider it, but you will get far more stability (longer tenancies), respect etc from a family or a bunch of workers who aren't living off daddy.

One tenancy for the whole place is far less hassle to deal with.
A lettings agency will charge about 10%

The simplest investment strategy that I'm aware of seems to be property investment

I would get a good financial advisor becoming to this conclusion. Obviously, I don't know the ins and outs of your financial situation but the yield on most rental properties bought at today's prices will be below what you can achieve with a bespoke investment portfolio - that's assuming you have the cash to invest, and would not be relying on a mortgage to finance the property purchase.

My thoughts were graduate students rather than undergrads.
I'd pass on management to a letting agency whilst I was working away.