Buying to let -- any advice please?

Fire_Fox

bundly wrote: »

Thank you Firefox for your time and effort.

"if you pay a low service charge you will get a low standard of service"

The two flats I used to rent locally had no service charges at all. In both cases I and the other leaseholders just apportioned the cost of repairs as and when. Neither were in blocks but conversions. But yes, of course I would look into this very closely. When viewing, if the communal areas look shabby that would be a red light to me, and before buying I would want to know all the details of who looks after what and at what cost. The place I mentioned with the £1,500 service charge is Marine Court, a famous building on the seafront of St Leonards. THere are two flats on the market there, one at 60k the other 70k.

As I said earlier it's not just service charge "out of the rental income you will have to pay service charges and ground rent, buildings and landlords insurance, income tax, repairs and safety certificates ... voids and non-payers." Have you priced all these up?

Well of course not, it's not possible to price them up until you have a property in mind. But yes I know they exist thank you for pointing them all out. I did used to pay all these things in the flats I used to rent, of course. My boyfriend owns and lives in a flat and his service charge is £1480 pa and includes ground rent and buildings insurance as well as water rates. Presumably I could ask the tenant to pay the water rates part of it if this was the case with the place I buy?

I'm not going to retract my earlier statement: in general a lower service charge = a lower standard of care. If you are fully self managed or share of freehold that's is different animal, as you are not paying for someone else to cream off a profit just repairs as and when.

I will put my hands up and say I am rather jaded when it comes to commercial management companies, being at the end of a three year dispute with ours. Do not trust invoices, contracts or any other paperwork that looks above board - these do NOT prove work is or has been done. In our case I believe that invoices relating to cleaning and lighting were fraudulent.

As leaseholder you alone are legally responsible for paying for electricity and/ or water that might be included in the service charge. The tenant is legally responsible for paying council tax and utilities that are billed directly to the flat. It is possible to change this via the tenancy agreement, but it is difficult to enforce so is simpler to set the rent to accounting for the 'free' water.

Have you considered buying at auction?

missile

bundly wrote: »

The two flats I used to rent locally

These are flats which you owned and let or flats where you were a tennant?

johnny_storm

Dont let people put you off. House prices always go up in the long term. Had you done this 10 years ago you would be minted now!

Good luck, hugs.

Fire_Fox

Brock_Landers wrote: »

Isn't the above all the reason NOT to take such a huge risk? Why on earth do you think I'm jealous? You're bloody less well off then me? What have I to be jealous about?

And yes I do take offence to tax payer money being used for property speculation, couldn't give to hoots about your accident. The money you get from the state is not for property speculation. Just like I took offence to the govt using tax payer money to bail out the banks who were in reality brought down by property speculation!

Don't be so ridiculous. Why is it 'wrong' for the OP to set herself up for the future rather than blow her incapacity benefit on a Sky package, depreciating asset such as a car, new clothes ... :rolleyes: BTL is a business like any other, those who are prudent are still turning a profit, those who got greedy have lost out.

ThrowingStonesAtYou

johnny_storm wrote: »

Dont let people put you off. House prices always go up in the long term. Had you done this 10 years ago you would be minted now!

Good luck, hugs.

Chocolate frog prices always go up in the long term too. They used to be one hapenny now they are 10p. Imagine how much you would have now if you sunk your life savings into investing in them.

Deadman_2

johnny_storm wrote: »

Dont let people put you off. House prices always go up in the long term. Had you done this 10 years ago you would be minted now!

Good luck, hugs.

That's the spirit Johnny. The jealousy on this thread that the market is heading UP again and people are taking full advantage is astounding.

:money: :money: :money:

Bloo_Loo

bundly wrote: »

Oh just to add - I am not working, and the Nationwide, with whom I have my 60k invested, have just told me on the phone that because of that, even though the loan to value is a mere 10% of what my property is worth, they cannot offer me a mortgage......!

End of story Pal.

Back to the X factor with you.

_Andy_

bundly wrote: »

Oh just to add - I am not working, and the Nationwide, with whom I have my 60k invested

Not relevant to the lending

, have just told me on the phone that because of that, even though the loan to value is a mere 10% of what my property is worth, they cannot offer me a mortgage......!

not surprising as you're unemployed. Standard lending criteria. Not sure why you seem so incredulous about it.

dopester

bundly wrote: »

What is HPC? I have never heard of it, and I have never posted to it, how can it have my thread on it?

Durr. I hope you're smarter when it comes to dealing with all manner of tenants you might encounter.

No wonder you've been burned before - you now want to buy a BTL, but don't expect any tenants to put up with bolshy landlord harassment or intruding on their quiet enjoyment of any property you buy and let: "I want to live practically next door to the place I am letting, to keep a close eye on things and mostly to let the tenants know that I am!"

Go on then... blow your £60K and put your main home at risk to buy in Hastings.

bundly

Hello Granville, I'd be glad to hear the less stressful ways of making £60k work harder. I've got it all in e-bonds that are getting between 3 and 4pc. They all mature in February. So do tell :--)

Brock is some kind of hysteric or fantasist who is now just plain lying. He is now claiming that it is taxpayer's money (in the form of Incapacity Benefit) that I am using for property speculation. In fact the £60k that I have was made entirely through property.

Also he should realise that I was a taxpayer for 35 years before the accident I had at work that he says he does not care about. I call it an accident, in fact I was a nurse raped and beaten by a patient. Nice to know he does not care ....