The Craven Wildsmith Blog

Northern Rock accelerates mortgage lending

cravenwildsmith — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 08:07:02 +0000

The state-owned bank loaned £1bn for new mortgages in the three months to the end of September but said the housing market remained ‘subdued’

From: FT.com – UK Homepage | November 04, 2009

Green shoots aren’t stopping rental arrears

cravenwildsmith — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 09:50:57 +0000

For landlords, life may seem as if it’s finally getting easier; interest rates are down, and according to a recent RICS survey rents are on the up. But it’s not all green shoots; some tenants are still facing financial pressures, which are leading to increased rental arrears.

Research conducted by the National Landlords Association (NLA), the UK’s leading representative body for private-residential landlords, reveals nearly three quarters of landlords have experienced rental arrears. Worryingly, 43% of these occurred in the last 12 months.

NLA Rent Guarantee Insurance offers a way for landlords to minimise the risk from loss of rent. Should problems arise during the tenancy, the cover also provides legal expenses and a dedicated 24-hour advisory service. Available to all residential property landlords, NLA Rent Guarantee Insurance offers much needed piece of mind.

David Salusbury, Chairman, NLA, commenting on the launch of NLA Rent Guarantee Insurance said: “Landlords may not realise they can protect themselves against rental arrears, but our research clearly shows there is a need to safeguard your rental income. Unfortunately we aren’t out the woods with the economy just yet, and thanks to redundancy and unemployment some tenants are struggling to pay their rent.”

“While it is wise to take out insurance, landlords should not forget the importance of also taking full references and making checks at the outset of a tenancy. Keep in touch with your tenants too. If they feel they can come to you if they are facing difficulties, you may be able to come to an arrangement before rental arrears become more serious.”

Source: http://www.landlords.org.uk

Craven Wildsmith www.craven-wildsmith.co.uk

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‘Investors buying more property’

cravenwildsmith — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 08:55:33 +0000

Investors have opted to buy more property over the last year, new research from the Association of Residential Letting Agents (Arla) has revealed.

The study indicated that the average residential landlord investor has boosted their property portfolio from 6.3 to seven homes in less than 12 months.

According to the survey, buy-to-let investment has almost doubled in the last five years, with the average number of properties per landlord increasing from four in 2004 to its current level.

Ian Potter, operations manager at Arla, said: “Low interest rates and proportionately higher rental yields are making the buy-to-let market attractive again to experienced investors.”

The 0.5 per cent Bank of England interest rates Mr Potter refers to are expected to be kept at the same level for the rest of the year and most of 2010.

Indeed, many economists are predicting that the cost of borrowing will stay at this record low throughout next year.

Landlords ‘must be aware of obligations to tenants’

cravenwildsmith — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 08:49:27 +0000

Landlords need to be aware of their obligations to those who rent property from them, according to the Association of Residential Letting Agents’ (Arla) operations manager Ian Potter.

He claimed that this is one of the key things people in the buy-to-let sector need to remember – whether they are an experienced professional or someone who is a so-called accidental landlord.

Mr Potter’s comments came after Arla published new research showing that the number of reluctant landlords has dropped for the third consecutive quarter.

Apparently some 60 per cent of Arla members’ offices reported that property was being rented out – as opposed to sold – during the third quarter of 2009. This figure stood at 95 per cent and 80 per cent in the first and second quarters respectively.

“The fact that the number of reluctant landlords has dropped once again and supported by the rise in demand for buy-to-let suggests that movement is beginning to occur across the market,” Mr Potter explained.

Earlier this month, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors revealed that its members reported a rise in demand for buy-to-let property in the three months to September.

Rise rather than a fall in demand for buy-to-let property

cravenwildsmith — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 08:47:25 +0000

The number of surveyors who reported a rise rather than a fall in demand for buy-to-let property in the three months to September increased by two per cent, according to the latest research from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (Rics).

Some five per cent more surveyors reported that demand for houses from buy-to-let landlords had grown during the period, although 15 per cent of surveyors reported a fall – as opposed to a rise – in demand for buy-to-let flats.

Lee Grandin, director of broker Landlord Mortgages, said that flats are not necessarily unpopular – “maybe it’s more the case that lenders are restricting lending on new-build flats”.

Flats are traditionally “very good let-able units” as they are situated at the lower end of the property market, he added.

A recent study by the Association of Residential Letting Agents found that buy-to-let investment has increased considerably since the start of the decade.

Indeed, the average number of properties per investor has apparently grown from four in 2004 to nearly double that amount now.

Hello world!

cravenwildsmith — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 08:36:21 +0000