If you are a landlord are you thinking of selling up?

[Didyousaysomethingdarling]

Are you reassessing your continued role as a landlord, due to the changes to tax (S24), proposals regarding EPCs, the recently published private rented sector white paper, along with interest rate rises and increased maintenance costs, etc? I'm having to let one of my properties go and my tenants can't find anywhere. Is it because lots of landlords are issuing section 21s at the same time? It looks like there's a bottleneck. How do you see it playing out in the short/medium term?

Most renters simply cannot afford to buy. Especially ‘families with children’ who need houses and not a 2 bed starter home and are likely to have a part-time parent. Because it’s very hard to save for for a deposit while paying rent

I thought this is what the new rules were going to address. And how people pay rent but can't qualify for the same mortgage payment.

@mellongoose

With the mortgage review underway and set to report in the autumn, this trend could start to turn the tables for people. Going from renters to buyers?

Quite possibly but I think it will take a long time. As a country we are not building enough, we have more new households created each year, than additional houses built.
Changing the balance between owner occupiers and renters is more to do with the availability of credit (mortgages). If landlords were only allowed to borrow 4.5 x their income on a repayment basis, as opposed to interest only, this would definitely bring house prices down.

Can anyone help with advice? I'm an accidental landlord so not that tuned in.

I have one BTL; it's worth about £425k; I make around £1000 each month after tax; I've just remortgaged on a two year rate.

I'm looking to sell the flat I live in asap, probably end of the year (it needs work doing), and buy a house around £700k - so will have to pay £46k in stamp duty as it's a second home.

Would I be better off just selling both at the same time and having a v low mortgage (I would have around £600k in capital)? Argh. My tenant and her daughter have only been in for about 8 months, I would feel awful kicking them out in the early new year.

Oh god I hadn't heard about any of these changes and am only a landlord as we had to move for work and don't have enough time to sell and buy so we rented it out and rented ourselves.

It is a one bed Victorian terrace flat so it sounds like it's going to be a nightmare to get to a C. We really wanted to hang on till tenants from upstairs left and owners of that flat were ready to sell, then to covert back to a family home and move back in. Maybe that won't be possible now.

@roarfeckingroarr
I'm looking to sell the flat I live in asap, probably end of the year (it needs work doing), and buy a house around £700k - so will have to pay £46k in stamp duty as it's a second home.

You will not pay the extra 3% SDLT if the property you're buying is replacing your main residence and that has already been sold. If you have not sold your main residence on the day you complete your new purchase you'll have to pay higher rates.
www.gov.uk/stamp-duty-land-tax/residential-property-rates#:~:text=If%20you're%20replacing%20your,have%20to%20pay%20higher%20rates.

I doubt it , they only bought it late in 2020 we moved in early 2021 .. I just can't see them wanting to sell this quickly .

@plasticcanister
It is a one bed Victorian terrace flat so it sounds like it's going to be a nightmare to get to a C. We really wanted to hang on till tenants from upstairs left and owners of that flat were ready to sell, then to covert back to a family home and move back in. Maybe that won't be possible now.

It could work out for you. If the flat above is a rental, that landlord may sell up because of the expensive EPC regs and then you could buy it and convert it back to a family home, if you live in it the EPC rules won't apply (for now anyway!).

It’s only the scrapping of the ‘affordability test’ .So anyone who can afford a mortgage at current rates is allowed to get one as opposed to seeing whether they can afford it at higher rates.

The borrowing to income ratio still remains, as does the need for a deposit which is the biggest barrier.

I guess it depends amongst many other things, if they have a mortgage on it. A few months before the fixed rate ends they might reassess their position. Best of luck.

*also well not allowed to get one as it still depends on the specific lenders’ risk tolerance but banks don’t have to stress test anymore

@knickersniff
I doubt it, they only bought it late in 2020 we moved in early 2021 .. I just can't see them wanting to sell this quickly .

Sorry the above post is for you.

That's just bloody nuts. No incentive to let it out then. No wonder so many properties sit empty!!

Ah ok, I should have carried on reading the thread!!

it's all a massive bloody headache. I'm going to have to sit down & get my head around it all properly, but will leave it for a bit as hopefully it'll be at least a year away & just as likely to be different by then anyway!

(might have to rent mine/leave it empty/get house sitters) while I go overseas to deal with some family stuff for a couple/few years, but would need bricks & mortar to come home to)

I bought my flat from an ex landlord in 2019. I am looking to move to a bigger 3 bed flat also being sold by an ex landlord now. Its true that a lot of rental properties may not be the stereotypical ideal family home as landlords look for yield and those houses usually have poor yield compared to a 2 bed starter home. But at least an increase in supply of these properties would mean renters have an option to buy that flat or 2 bed terraced. I have a colleague who started out in a 2 bed flat when he had 1 kid and another on the way so only 1 income ; he has now managed to buy a 4 bed detached as his wife is now working FT.

Wow weeee it's all mega complicated!!!

Just read about epc enforcement coming in mines a D, due to being Victorian with original well kept windows in conservation area so replacing 9 huge windows would be 😱

I'm sure it was all change in a few years. But what a stress.

@didyousaysomethingdarling, when you get a new boiler you get a lot of points, as boiler ages less points, between 8-10 years boiler is aging so you get less points. Sort of a sliding scale. They look at quality of radiators too. Last year I had to have one replaced and individual thermostats too to gain enough points for a C grade. There are other things such as solar panels, but those more expensive. I have brought up three of my properties that were D up to a B rating. Other cheap option LCD/energy saving lights in every room and loft lagging 270mm.

It’s only the scrapping of the ‘affordability test’ .So anyone who can afford a mortgage at current rates is allowed to get one as opposed to seeing whether they can afford it at higher rates.

I didn't just mean that. I meant the 95% mortgages backed by the gov. I also think there will be more reforms, we are seeing it with places looking to restrict 2nd home ownership. I just think there is a general dislike of landlords & people having to pay more rent than a mortgage on the equivalent property.

No, but we’ve stopped renting our second place out. It’s just not worth it any more.

My tennants have been in my house for 14 years but if they left I wouldn't rent it again that's for sure.

Are the new epc regs set in stone now? I thought that there was a cost over which you would be exempt? It would cost too much to get ours to a C. There are small changes but it would require solar panels or heat pump to bump it up from a D to C. That plus CGT wouldnt make financial sense so at that point we are out. I'm not prepared to loose money and we already rent out 30% below market rate. After 14 years you can imagine it's also in need of a complete refurbishment. It's not ideal as I cant imagine what the tennants could afford. But that's always been the risk.

plus the changes to EPC, pets, section 21 etc. Landlords are certainly the target at the moment & the public have little sympathy.

I wouldn't be surprised to see a reform to CGT too, personally I think it should be in line with income.

Annoyingly you don’t get that allowance anymore.

Annoyingly you don’t get that allowance anymore

Is section 21 definitely going? I thought that was just being discussed. I'm out at that point 110% you never know when you might loose your job or get divorced etc and I need certancy that even if the tennants didnt leave I'd have house back in 12 months. I couldnt pay the mortgage for years and years waiting for a court date.

I have just put my flat in the market.