Andy Graham

Hear hear!

Despite the anti-landlord narrative, there are many great people out there, landlords and developers, who are contributing very positively to the PRS.

The younger generation of investors (which at 36 I hope I’m still allowed to class myself as) are the key to the future of the PRS. It’s time we started to help, support snd champion them (us).

Thank you for showing the way Mark and the Property 118 team!... Read More

Hi Old Mrs Landlord, and thanks for your contribution.

The idea that landlords look only buy neglected properties that need refurbishment that wouldn't otherwise be purchased is a distorted and micro view of the PRS. The majority of the PRS is tied up in property owned long term and cash owners are the biggest of any tenure group, of whom interestingly have seen 40% of a their return come from capital growth alone. Only a tiny fraction of landlords buy with the desire to refurbish, and only a tiny fraction of those properties could otherwise not be bought by owner occupiers (i.e. are not mortgageable). Furthermore to my point, very few proeprties end up derelict and uninhabitable for any reason other than the legalities underlying the ownership (deceased estates etc). Owner occupiers buy properties requiring refurbishment as much as private landlords do.

Between April 2016 and 2017 the number of households renting increased by 164,000, 3% more than 2016. Countrywide forecast that the sector will continue growing in 2018, and over the next five years. By 2022, 20.5% of households will be renting in GB, up from 19.4% today. By 2025 the sector will reach six million households.

The reason the PRS contributes to (housing) price inflations is because as an investment class, it continues to outperform many others, so investors stick with it, hold long terms and keep buying. Many factors contribute to rises in house prices, but the proportional reduction in availability of homes to owner occupiers outlined above, because private landlords are buying homes that could otherwise suit owner occupiers, is one of these reasons.

I would agree with you that (one of the other reasons) rent inflation has happened as a result of government meddling. The point is multifaceted though and expands beyond national economics and politics and is actually tied to international geopolitics too (... lets see what Brexit does, as just one example).... Read More

Hi Steve. I've been letting to students for approximately 8 years and as a co-founder of Smart Property, also oversee all of our lettings and purchases of student properties across a number of cities (although not Coventry or London I'm afraid). Like most things, there are pro's and cons. to this tenant group. I am a huge advocate for student letting because rentals are predictable and secure. We rent on single joins and severely liable tenancies, each tenant must also have a guarantor and the contract is for a fixed term of 51 or 52 weeks. Students typically sign up several months earlier too, so we're now 90% let until July 2019 which is a great position for a landlord to be in. Obviously the elevated rent opportunity is another plus, and on the whole, our students are lovely people who cause very little trouble. Some things to consider off the bat though: Students are picky, if a property is in the wrong area or street, they won't be interested. Standards of student accommodation have risen greatly so you must consider the competition even if your properties are in the right area. There may also be considerations for Article 4 and HMO licensing and if you have lending, so you should look into viability in the first instance. You will need the appropriate lending consent/product and compatible insurance.... Read More

Hi Rob! Thanks for your comments! I agree with everything you say, and I certainly don't enjoy managing fridges - getting rid of them is even worse!!!... Read More

Hi Anne! Thanks for your comments! I agree that providing cleaning can be another very good inclusion. We offer this on all of our professional lets, and in a selection of the student properties for an additional fee! I also agree with you on having a 'cap' on utility usage which we enforce through the terms of each tenancy agreement!... Read More

Hi Whitefreak Surrey - sorry for the slow reply, I haven't been getting notifications of comments on my posts for some reason! Glad you found the article useful though. My opinion and experience is that wifi is the most important inclusion, particularly with the students. I have found that delays in connecting up (new providers take in the region of 2 weeks) is a frustrating issue for tenants. You are correct in that at times, service bandwidth can drop, but our again, my experience is that tenants are usually understanding of these factors that are beyond the control landlords! If tenants smashed a router, (under our tenancy agreements) they would have to pay for the replacement and would have to wait until they were reconnected.... Read More

Mark, are you interperating the new premium council tax on empty properties as being affective on properties undergoing refurbs too? This would be several hundred pounds at any time for us and is very disappointing, it's like financially penalising a landlord for wanting to improve the standard of accommodation.... Read More

Hi David

I am sorry to hear you are having difficulties with this property. A sensible and calculated approach should mean only having to adjust your (original) expectations that hopefully won't affect your position in the property significantly. I will caveat my advice by noting that I don't personally invest or operate in Liverpool, however I am familiar with the wider student and professional housing markets and co-own a successful R2R business operating across a number of other central and norther cities.

As a first piece advice I would recommend getting a full spread of advice/data on your property with regard to the immediate demand from students and young professionals. You must rely on local expertise to help determine whether or not doing any works is a sensible investment. This needs to be measured in the context of your personal circumstances too and the projected end value. I like to feel extremely confident and have the evidence available to support a plan of refurbishment. So in short, get as much advice as from local, credible agents as possible before making a decision.

Secondly, a R2R agreement is a feasible solution, but there are some important considerations. Firstly, any agreement needs the appropriate consents, so this must be taken into consideration as many lenders will not allow a lease. Also, an agreement that leaves you only at break even is exposure to unforeseen issues and interest rate rises, so I wouldn't advise this. This type of agreement needs to benefit both parties. Feel free to contact me if you would like me to further advise on this. You should be comfortable asking any perspective operator to present their credentials.

My parting thoughts would be that taking a hit of circa £40k is a significant loss, so I would explore every scenario in depth before considering this. Feel free to return any specific questions to me, although I'm about to board a plane so may have spotted availability for the coming few days.

Thanks
Andy... Read More

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Hi Kevin! Thanks for your contribution. I have looked at the Smart alarm in the link and it looks great! Looking at these types of thing can be overwhelming with such choice on offer! Glad you found the article useful!... Read More

His Dylan, I agree with the mathematics of it, but I'm not sure the net effect would be significant enough to affect the supply/demand of the rental market on a macro level, my personal opinion is that this needs addressing from a 'new homes built' point of view, but that topic is beyond my expertise. Thanks for contributing.... Read More

Hi Dylan, thanks for your comment. To regain the context of this, the quote goes 'the restrictions on working visas mean that newly graduated EU and international students, now converted to young professionals, will leave instead of contributing to the housing market and the economy' - this is an opinion of mine purely on the possible impact of visa restrictions limiting the ability of European international to stay. We have lots of great tenants from all over Europe, some working, some studying and I think it would be detrimental in many ways to the housing market and local communities.... Read More