Often when someone is asked to imagine what they think the average landlord is like then many a time some not too positive comments are made.
Phrases such as ‘Money grabbing’, ‘Don’t care about tenants’, ‘Taking advantage of the housing market’ and ‘Only interested in profit’ are often made and the image of the squat, slick, slum-landlord are evoked.
While there are certainly individuals out there who operate in the above way (and believe me over the years I have met my fair share) then at Resolve we still support the Buy to Let market and actively engage with existing and potential landlords to provide them with mortgage advice.
Why, you might ask, would a business which actively endeavours to do good in the communities it works in (promoting sustainable investments, advocating community over individualism and charity work being some of the activities we engage in), actively promote Buy to Let?
The simple answer is that, like many things, the arguments around ‘To Buy to Let’ or ‘Not to Buy to Let’ are not simple Black and White but have a lot of grey. We believe that Buy to Let can be a force for good within the housing market, if, done properly.
We live in a society where housing has become a premium commodity and as much as we might not like this, and want more fairness in the housing market, changing the current status quo is, to be honest, a little outside of our powers.
We can however support Buy to Let by ensuring that the landlords we engage with are treating Buy to Let, and the tenants they have, in a way that aligns with our company values.
So, what does this actually mean? Well firstly we ensure that every time we discuss Buy to Let with an existing or potential property investor we explore their motivation and reason for owning and letting property. If it is purely short-term profit then we have in the past advised a client that we might not be the broker for them. Put very simply, investing in a property on this basis adds fuel to the increase in property values which further excludes first time buyers and other individuals from the property market.
If, however a landlord is looking to buy a property with a long term plan to own and let this out then this is a different matter. Unfortunately, there are still many people who cannot afford to buy a home for themselves. Good landlords, who buy with the intention of looking after a property while they let it out can provide an important option for individuals and families to afford home of their own on a rented basis.
We also have a large amount of housing stock in the UK which has been left to degrade and is need of being improved, developed and brought up to standard. In the absence of a national fund to pay for this, the private property investor and landlord offers an important part of the market to pay for this to happen thus putting on to the market a property which is fit for use where before it wasn’t.
Landlords who see property as a long-term investment where their asset needs to be looked after and their ‘customer’, the tenant, needs to be securely housed in a safe, clean, good quality property, are the type of investors and landlords we like and it is down to meeting these values that means we at Resolve actively support and promote the right Buy to Let market and landlord.
So, if you are a landlord who values their property portfolio and cares about your tenants experience of living in a property you own then we want to talk to you. And if you have ever wondered how a business which champions sustainability and ethical finances and living sleeps easy at night when also promoting Buy to Let and assisting landlords then hopefully the above explains to you the additional information we are looking to get when asking ‘So why are you looking to own and let this property out?’
If you would like to discuss buy-to-let mortgages in more detail, please get in touch.
Please note: The Financial Conduct Authority does not regulate Buy to Let mortgages. Your home maybe repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage or other loan secured on it.