Landlord and BTL Blog

Tuesday, August 03, 2010

Brits won't go continental

The 'brits' are very different from the 'continentals'.

In the same week that we realised that we were never going to adopt a continental style of drinking we are also realising that the continental style of renting will never really appeal to 'brits' either.

All the journalists were touting a future shift to long term renting as a lifestyle change to bring us in line with the rental traditions of the Germans, Italians and French. It was the 'cool' thing to do, like riding a Vespa or sipping espresso.

However, we are British, we drink cappuccinos in the afternoon and we still like to own our own home at any cost and if someone will serve us alcohol at 4 in the morning we will carry on drinking.

Forget the 'continental rental culture' , forget the 'continental cafe cultured', there's just no changing us.

We are alcoholic, propertyholic, chocoholics and proud.

With the news that property prices could continue to rise through until 2014 despite all the economic indicators it just shows that the 'brits' love property as much as beer, and that's saying something.

See all the property price twitter

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Property price twitter - up

"The only way is up, baby........ " - what a difference a week makes.

House prices to soar again - Express
House prices to rise until 2014 - Press Association
House price recovery through to 2014 - Bloomberg
Prices going up not down - Sky
Prime London property falls by half a percent - FT
A third of properties see price reduction - Telegraph

See all the property price tweets

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BTL Mortgages - most popular

Looking for a buy-to-let mortgage? Visit www.propertyhawk.co.uk and save time and money!

Our free online buy-to-let mortgage service aims to provide you with the most competitive buy-to-let mortgages in the market, whilst helping you choose a product to suit your individual requirements. You can use the free buy-to-let mortgage finder to get an instant personalised quote and apply for your mortgage online. There are no broker fees charged for this service so you could save yourself considerable time and money when arranging your next buy-to-let mortgage.

Below is a selection of the most popular buy-to-let mortgages currently available. For full information on these products, and all other buy-to-let mortgage schemes available to you, please visit www.propertyhawk.co.uk and click on Mortgages to use the free online buy-to-let mortgage finder. If you would like to discuss your requirements with a member of the support team please telephone 029 2069 5446.

Most popular buy-to-let mortgages

Interest Rate	Overall Cost for Comparison	Max LTV	Product Detail	Completion Fee	Early Repayment Charges
3.64% Tracker	5.2% APR	60%	Variable tracker rate of BBR + 3.14% until 31/08/2012 then reverting to the lender's standard variable rate which is currently 4.99% for the remainder of the term. This product is available up to 60% LTV and the rental calculation is 125% at payrate. An application fee will apply.	3.5%	4% of original balance being repaid until 31/08/2012
3.79% Tracker	5.3% APR	60%	Variable tracker rate of BBR + 3.29% until 30/09/2012 then reverting to the lender's standard variable rate which is currently 4.99% for the remainder of the term. This product is available up to 60% LTV and there is a rental calculation of 125% at a notional rate of 4.99%. An application fee will apply.	3.5% (min £595)	3% of amount being repaid until 30/09/2012
3.88% Tracker	4.1% APR	65%	Variable tracker rate of BBR + 3.38% for the lifetime of the loan. This product is available up to 65% LTV and there is a rental calculation of 100% at a notional rate of 8.5%. An application fee will apply. Available on a repayment basis only and for loans up to £150,000. The completion fee is payable at offer stage.	£1695	1% of original balance being repaid for 1 year
4.14% Tracker	5.4% APR	70%	Variable tracker rate of BBR + 3.64% until 30/09/2012 then reverting to the lender's standard variable rate which is currently 4.99% for the remainder of the time. This product is available up to 70% LTV and there is a rental calculation of 125% at a notional rate of 4.99%. An application fee will apply.	3.5% (min £595)	3% of amount being repaid until 30/09/2012
4.35% Tracker	5.1% APR	75%	Variable tracker rate of BBR + 3.85% for 1 year then reverting to a variable rate of BBR + 4.19% to give a current rate of 4.69% for the remainder of the term. This product is available up to 75% LTV and the rental calculation is 125% at payrate. An application fee will apply.	3%	3% of amount being repaid for 1 year
4.89% Fixed	5.1% APR	60%	Fixed rate currently of 4.89% until 30/09/2012 then reverting to the lender's standard variable rate which is currently 4.74% for the remainder of the term. There is a free valuation up to £680 for purchases and remortgages and free legals or £200 contribution for remortgages only. This product is available up to 60% LTV and the rental calculation is 125% at payrate. There is a £250 booking fee and an application fee will apply.	£1499	4% of amount being repaid until 30/09/2012
4.94% Tracker	4.6% APR	70%	Limited company product. Variable tracker rate of BBR + 3.84% until 30/09/2011 then reverting to a variable rate of BBR + 3.49% to give a current rate of 3.99% for the remainder of the term. This product is available up to 70% LTV and the rental calculation is 125% at a notional rate of 4.99%. An application fee will apply.	3.5% (min £595)	3% of amount being repaid until 30/09/2011
4.99% Fixed	5.5% APR	80%	4.99% fixed rate until 30/09/2011 then reverting the the lender's standard variable rate which is currently 4.99% for the remainder of the term. This product is available up to 80% LTV and there is a rental calculation of 125% at payrate. An application fee will apply.	3% (min £595)	5% of amount being repaid until 30/09/2011
5.4% Fixed	5.3% APR	75%	Fixed rate of 5.40% until 01/10/2012 reverting to a variable rate of BBR + 4.24% to give a current rate of 4.74% for the remainder of the term. This product is available up to 75% LTV and there is a rental calculation is 125% at payrate. An application fee will apply.	2.5%	3% of amount being repaid until 01/10/2012
5.69% Fixed	5.2% APR	70%	5.69% fixed rate until 01/11/2012 then reverting to the lender's standard variable rate which is currently 4.79% for the remainder of the term. This product is available up to 70% LTV and the rental calculation is 120% at payrate. An application fee will apply.	2%	4% of the outstanding balance as of 1st January until 01/11/2012

IMPORTANT! Due to current market conditions, lenders are withdrawing and replacing products with little or no notice.
Please check our website regularly to see the most up-to-date products available.

Please visit www.propertyhawk.co.uk and click on Mortgages to search the full product range and find a buy-to-let mortgage to suit your specific personal circumstances.

Email: info@propertyhawkbtlmortgages.co.uk

Tel: 029 2069 5446

Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgages. The Financial Services Authority does not regulate some forms of mortgage.

The Time to Sell is Now!

• UK Property Market is now back to 2007 Levels

After a tumultuous few years for UK property sales, what with the economic downturn and more recently the hype surrounding the general election, it really has turned a corner and is now in great condition. It is attracting both international and UK based buyers due to the low interest rates and the weak pound. This economic environment twinned with the comparative levels of confidence means more properties for sale are entering the market and therefore meaning it is the best time to sell.

In fact, Hamptons International have stated that from analysing their figures, that this going to be the optimum level for the market for quite a while for several reasons.

Firstly, there is a strong trend of more properties entering the market. In April 2010, this property company reported a 32 per cent increase in instructions in comparison to the previous year. This is all the more impressive if you consider the low levels of stock that the market has experienced recently. During the spring months, the level of demand also mirrored this increase, especially when it comes to the London property market. The number of buyers who have registered with Hamptons International is up 14 per cent in comparison to last year. Overall it means that Hamptons International now lists a similar level of stock to last year and that the degree of demand is now close to the top levels seen in 2006 and 2007.

This level of demand has meant a fifteen per cent increase in the number of sales for this property company. Perhaps more importantly these are being converted into exchanges which are also up but by 47 per cent year on year.

Pricing is of course an essential factor when examining the sales market. Over the past twelve months, pricing has stabilised and in many cases are back to the levels of 2007 when the market activity was at its highest. This stability is really underpinning the confidence in the market but it is now set to remain consistent for the rest of the year. This is due to the reduced inflationary pressure which is powered by the increase of stock. Therefore further price rises for the remainder of 2010 are considered unlikely.

In summary, it certainly feels like the best time to sell for prospective home owners. With the increase in both buyer demand and stock available twinned with the economic backdrop and stabilised pricing and interest rates; the market conditions are currently the best this year and remain likely to be the peak of 2010.

MP wants tax on student landlords

MIKE Hancock the Lib Dem MP for Portsmouth South has called on the new Coalition Government to start charging student landlords business rates on their homes.

MMMM interesting one Mike. Have you thought this one through. Perhaps not.....

He states he is in agreement with the current situation where students are exempt from paying council tax. This lost revenue currently costs Portsmouth City Council £3.5m per year he suggests. His big idea is that 'fat cat' student landlords who make money out of students should pay business rates on their properties to make up this shortfall.

So Mike..... brilliant idea but there may be a few little flaws in your plan like:

When is a student not a student? Does a part time student qualify. What about houses where some tenants are students, some are not? Post grads doing work placements......students Mike?

Landlords with large property portfolios might legitimately be classed as a business but what about the legions of landlords with one property that they let out to three or four students, with very often one of them being their own child.

Most importantly Mike. If student landlords are to be treated like a business; then surely they should also be taxed as a business. This would allow the far more generous treated of expenses and allowances than is currently the case. Importantly, it would mean that rental losses could be off set against other taxable income as is the case with holiday homes. This would be particularly useful for many landlords who have frequently made losses on their rental business but have been unable to set against other taxable income made in the same tax year.

So Mike, interesting idea, but have you really thought it through, if so feel free to clarify your ideas. If not we will just have to assume that it's yet another politician's posturing from the comfort of their ivory tower with not so much of a toe grounded where the rest of us live.

"PLANET EARTH'

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