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Thursday, May 28, 2020

There’s a first time for everything including buy-to-let

There has been a swathe of tax and regulatory changes impacting on the buy-to-let sector in recent years which may have affected the perception of residential rental property and its viability as an investment option. 

Consequently, the sector has seen a reduction in the number of amateur landlords and it is now primarily the domain of professional property investors. However, there are still people entering the market and looking to make their first buy-to-let purchases – a group referred to as ‘first time landlords’.

Most lenders on the Property Hawk Mortgages panel will accept applications from first time landlords providing they are currently an owner occupier, so there are plenty of product options in the marketplace. There is often a requirement that applicants have owned their residential home for a minimum length of time which may vary from 6 to 12 months, although some lenders do not state a minimum period providing the applicant’s name is on the title deeds.

It is not quite as straightforward for first time buyers - those with no existing UK property at all. Property Hawk Mortgages currently has around fifteen lenders on panel who will consider applicants without a history of property ownership such as Barclays, Landbay, Precise and Vida Homeloans. Some lenders will apply an affordability calculation alongside their normal rental stress tests and criteria, which depending on income multiples may limit the amount applicants can borrow.

There are also options for first time buyers to be the second applicant on a buy-to-let mortgage and it is a familiar scenario when parents help their children onto the property ladder in this way. Lenders who consider this include Interbay, Leeds Building Society and Paragon.


To discuss your buy-to-let mortgage requirements please contact the Property Hawk Mortgages team on: 029 2069 5446

Or use our free online mortgage search tool at Property Hawk Mortgages

Wednesday, May 27, 2020

Latest DPS rent index

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Student landlords are rightly concerned

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Tenants could lose access to duty solicitor in eviction cases

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Short-lived rebound in property demand

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Buyer demand surges 88%: Zoopla

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Saturday, May 23, 2020

Friday, May 22, 2020

Lendinvest reprices BTL deals

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Housing transactions collapse in April

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Charities warn of renter ‘knife edge’

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The future of BTL in a shrinking economy

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PRA guidance for mortgage payment holidays

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Scottish property market re-start

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Mortgage payment holiday extended

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BTL properties repossessed

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Monday, May 18, 2020

Rise in BTL repossessions

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Property market opens to price wars

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Landlords offering widespread support to tenants during Covid-19

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Platform reintroduces BTL mortgage products

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Rightmove's visits up

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Thursday, May 14, 2020

Scottish Q1 property investment is up

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House price forecast downgraded

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TSB raises BTL LTVs

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Coronavirus could end London's status

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Tenancy deposits and Covid-19.

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Five option beating buy-to-let returns

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8 ways to safeguard your BTL business

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Housing market in England to reopen

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Monday, May 11, 2020

Should we buy a property?

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House prices after lockdown

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London rents to fall after lockdown

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Mortgage rates hit ‘historic lows’

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Saturday, May 09, 2020

EPCs - all landlords need to know - things have changed!


The above is a an EPC in case you have never seen one before.

I have been using my time wisely update some of the content in the Landlords Bible and was shocked to find out how much has changed.  Check out the latest on Energy Performance Certificates EPC
to find out what a landlord's legal responsibilities are.


How will house prices be affected

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Buy-to-let rates on the rise

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Friday, May 08, 2020

Interbay resumes buy-to-let lending

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London rents to fall after lockdown

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SimplyBiz: contactless property valuations

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Landlords refusing to let tenants move out

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Aid for Scotlands private rental landlords

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House prices rise 2.7% in April – Halifax

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TMW introduces new products

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Students and tenants going on rent strike

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Wednesday, May 06, 2020

Coronavirus: landlord safety advice

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Monday, May 04, 2020

Later life lending for landlords

Research shows that  over half (59%) of England’s landlords are aged 55 years or older and one third are retired. Buy-to-let lenders have started to incorporate the market’s age demographic into their lending policies by identifying the pitfalls for later life applicants and then implementing the necessary changes to remedy this.

Potential pitfalls
Lenders impose a maximum number of years an applicant can have a loan for and so for older applicants the loan term may be restricted. This in turn could affect the affordability of the loans as shorter terms might equate to higher monthly payments. It is worth checking how lenders assess affordability, particularly whether state pensions are considered when calculating minimum income criteria.
The solutions
Lenders are changing their criteria to make buy-to-let finance more accessible to older landlords. For example, some lenders no longer stipulate a maximum at application or completion. There are also longer-term fixed rates up to 10 years which can offer affordability relief and security of monthly payments. Variable and lifetime products may also provide a solution. Pensions including private, widow’s and war pensions are becoming more widely accepted by mortgage lenders and existing landlords may also be able to use rental income in their income credentials.



To discuss your buy-to-let mortgage requirements please contact the Property Hawk Mortgages team on: 029 2069 5446

Or use our free online mortgage search tool at Property Hawk Mortgages