No Rent For Buy To Let Landlords

Reply to the comment left by Gromit at 03/04/2020 - 13:27
I meant the costs for the tenants. I actually think their living costs will go down. Can't spend on petrol, can't eat out, can't drink out. It costs money to work as anybody who works or has worked knows. My point is that with the support available the majority of tenants should still be able to pay their rent although some will have short-term cash flow problems.

Yes of course, the landlords will still have their costs - finance costs and other costs.

Reply to the comment left by JJ at 03/04/2020 - 11:49
Hi JJ,
whilst not disputing your excellent comment at all, I wanted to ask one question: What is your source/proof of the statement "It's also quite hard to over-eat"?
As far as everyone on social media / friends / co-workers from home etc are concerned - 'over-eating' is absolutely the easiest thing to do in the current situation. I am talking from experience too... Any proof of that statement will be highly appreciated and I will spread the word/tips around.

Reply to the comment left by JJ at 03/04/2020 - 13:30
Completely agree.

I've a student let where the students have vacated and handed keys back. I have to be careful that I don't incur Council Tax, higher insurance as the property is empty, and daily standing charges for gas/electricity/water

Reply to the comment left by Whiteskifreak Surrey at 03/04/2020 - 13:33
It's hard to over eat because you've got to stand in a long queue in the cold to buy food. 🙂

I still have to pay the mortgage on my own house. I still have to pay my council tax, utility bills, heating etc. But my expenses are going down because of the lockdown. If I was employed, furloughed and on 80% of my salary now I would have loads of money to buy booze. And that's what a lot of the people near me appear to be doing.

I'm self-employed. So my choice is, stay in routine, work on something monday-friday, only drink at weekends.

Speaking from a tenants view, I thankfully am on full pay at the moment and unlikely to be furloughed.

However to give myself as an example, if I was on 80% salary, I would be bringing home around £350 less each month. My expenses of going to work are roughly £80 a month. So even though I would not be travelling, I would be considerably worse off.

There are many fixed costs that don't change because I'm not travelling. There's rent, electricity, gas, water, insurances, phone, internet. If I end up on reduced salary, I will have to start burning through my savings.

As for the whole overeating thing, absolutely true. If people are stuck at home with nothing to do, they will eat more through sheer boredom.

Reply to the comment left by The Forever Tenant at 03/04/2020 - 16:01
All true, but you will also not be spending in bars, restaurants, coffee shops, retailers, massages, sporting events, going to Cinema’s etc.

You should be able to use this as an opportunity to save money towards buying a home of your own.

Reply to the comment left by Mark Alexander at 03/04/2020 - 16:22
I never did any of those things before.

As for saving towards my own home, I would love to, however there are a couple of things making it difficult. (Mostly down to the area I live in) and that is money required beforehand.

I live in Bristol and I would likely need somewhere in the region of £40,000 as a deposit. If I managed to save that then there are no mortgage companies that would give enough of a multiplier on my salary to cover the rest.

I've come to accept that I will likely be renting for the rest of my life, hence the username.

Reply to the comment left by The Forever Tenant at 03/04/2020 - 16:31
Don't you go on holidays either?

If you are spending 100% of your income on rent, utilities and groceries then you're going wrong somewhere. Even people in receipt of housing benefits manage to afford some luxury items.

I couldn't afford to buy my first home in the area I grew up in either, so I found something I could afford which was further away and commuted. It's all about life choices.

Nope, no holidays either. I can be honest with you and say that my ongoing costs are just that high, because that's what they are round here.

I did look at the commuting option, however the additional cost in petrol and commuting negated any saving made in rent.

I do have savings which I am putting money into each month but it's not fast enough and a life event like my car breaking down means that the savings can get gobbled up.

I'm in this weird middle place with my earnings. I earn too much to get any government assistance but not enough to make any headway on savings.

I'm trying to train further so that I can improve my career prospects and earn more, however I do think that Covid-19 is going to have a detrimental effect on the salaries of many many people and that wages are going to stagnate for some time. There may be no positions to move to for a little while.

Reply to the comment left by The Forever Tenant at 03/04/2020 - 17:12
In that case I applaud you for working as opposed to giving up and claiming benefits, as most other to.

I once had a lady called Anna who came to work for one of my trading companies which employed nearly 300 Members of staff. One day she explained to me that she was only £20 a week better off by working. I remember asking her why she was doing it then, when she could be caring for her young son. Her answer was that by doing nothing she would never be able to better herself. 10 years later she was still working for me. However, she had purchased a four bed home, was driving a Porsche and owned a multi-million pound rental property portfolio. She was still happily single, she didn't have a rich man in her life, and she hadn't got into dealing drugs or doing anything else that was illegal to achieve this. She had simply worked hard to get out of a position she might otherwise have been stuck in for the rest of her life. She now has her own business and insofar as I am aware is still doing well for herself.

I would love to add her full name here but that would be unfair, especially without her permission. However, her first name is Anna and I know she is an avid reader of Property118, so I hope she's reading this comment.

TO ANNA - if you are reading this, be proud, you deserve to be!