A Year In The Life

StevieJ

Of a Buy to Let landlord.

Interesting balanced summary of how a BTL landlord viewed 2009 and their views on 2010.

Pete, I'd be happy to tell you.

I was buying cheaper properties in selected areas and I did set myself a target.

Just after Christmas 2008 I started to find that I had less competition for properties so I could buy a little bit cheaper. By Spring 2009 I found that on occasion I was the only person bidding and managed to pick up some very, very good deals. One particular property I bought had previously sold at £180k and I paid £73k. It was a big, four storey place in a good area. I picked up a number for about 30-35% less than they were worth at peak, usually probate sales or BTL repossessions.
.

The rest is here:

http://boards.fool.co.uk/Message.asp?mid=11805533

Really2

StevieJ wrote: »

Of a Buy to Let landlord.

Interesting balanced summary of how a BTL landlord viewed 2009 and their views on 2010.

Pete, I'd be happy to tell you.

I was buying cheaper properties in selected areas and I did set myself a target.

Just after Christmas 2008 I started to find that I had less competition for properties so I could buy a little bit cheaper. By Spring 2009 I found that on occasion I was the only person bidding and managed to pick up some very, very good deals. One particular property I bought had previously sold at £180k and I paid £73k. It was a big, four storey place in a good area. I picked up a number for about 30-35% less than they were worth at peak, usually probate sales or BTL repossessions.
.

The rest is here:

http://boards.fool.co.uk/Message.asp?mid=11805533

Now who said the word from the front early last year was professional landlords were snapping up repos for cash
Much like what I had been told up to or over 50% discounts. If you had the money back then it was a great time to buy.

Really2

And here it is
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=1200569&highlight=

Realy wrote: »

I thought I should post this as an insight in to what is going on in the north and the midlands. (This is not a WUM post but news I may think of interest by some on here. I also know I am going to get loads of stick for this but I promise it is true)
I know a EA (close family) and he was saying how lots of NR customers are just handing back the keys to their houses as they are in NE and cannot afford NR’s SVR.
He as seen lots of repossessions (11 in the last week), he is selling them at 30% below 07 prices (but this is where the bad news for most future owners is) they are in the majority being purchased by professional BTLers (not your I have got a couple of BTL, but proper landlords that have being doing it for decades). The properties are going for around £70K and being rented out for around £575PM
I presume this could be because of strict lending but is surly not great news for potential home owners of the future.
Could we be seeing the makings of the next bubble already?
Could we be seeing own ownership decrease in the future due to Landlords holding large amounts of properties?
I would back it up with some facts but I can’t unfortunately.

chucky

StevieJ wrote: »

One particular property I bought had previously sold at £180k and I paid £73k.

i would love to contribute but i would then be told that anecdotal information means nothing :o

Mr.Brown_4

If it's true you have to feel sorry for the guy. BTL was yesterday's dream, and he could have made some real money on the stock markets last year. Still, as long as he's happy.

HAMISH_MCTAVISH

Early 2009 was a once in a generation opportunity to buy cheap property.

It still boggles the mind that so many people who were waiting for it, missed it. And in most cases, purely because they had got greedy, and bought into the hpc 50%+ falls hype.

How very bizarre....

dopester

Fine.. providing his relationship with his lenders survives and doesn't deteriorate if his 50+ portfolio hits problems. I learnt at 18 years of age that bankers smiles and friendliness can turn 180 quite easily. Without knowing how long he's been 'in the game' 50 properties would suggest some substantial leverage.

Let's hope the bulk of your guy's portfolio's isn't somewhere which can be badly affected by a major business closedown, or just generally in the UK decline of rental values into the future.

Also for Mr.Success there.. there are plenty of other landlords on the receiving end of the other side of lenders' nature. A small taster of a few landlords experiencing it on this thread (guy below has only 4 of his properties in arrears at the moment) with lenders just going LPA and taking the properties back.

Hi Nuke em, Without prejudice

I am in a similar situation with Mortgage Express who are incidentally government owned.

I have spent 15 years building up a small portfolio of properties. I have been a good landlord and have looked after my properties and my tenants. I didn't know about this LPA loophole, had I have known I would never had put myself in this point of risk. So I question the validity of their right to instruct an LPA. I work in property I have had banks cutting my credit lines in other formats and my business is now in jeopardy. I have run up credit card bills and have found this site to be a lifeline in order to deal with these.I have been struggling for about 6 months now.

My light at the end of the tunnel was just as the interest rates have dropped I started to get myself back on my feet. Unfortunately in the meantime I've just had a tenant who was made redundant did not pay the rent, and left the property in a bad state. In order to re-let it I had to refurbish it, whilst it was empty I didn't have a rental income. Unfortunately I had to rob Peter to pay Paul and I wasn't able to pay other buy-to-lets mortgages. I am now up to two and a half months in arrears. My fixed rates have just finished and I'm now on a lower standard variable rate so it would now be easy to clear the arrears. However mortgage express have instructed joint LPA's (whatever that means).

Now to me it looks like these banks need to shore up their balance sheets and need to grab as many fees as possible. The LPA route works wonders for them. They earn money and repossess the property, you lose everything. This is in effect stealing my income and pension.

I've now had enough and as an entrepreneurial type now think why bother. In the meantime can anyone offer any advice to challenge the use of LPA's I can see this thing escalating and many people like me losing their investment properties and income and then being forced into bankruptcy and eventually becoming a burden on the state. I really am very sad about the way these banks/government are now running the country and need any advice i can get to challenge them and to save my living. Thank you.

chucky

dopester wrote: »

Fine.. providing his relationship with his lenders survives and doesn't deteriorate if his 50+ portfolio hits problems. I learnt at 18 years of age that bankers smiles and friendliness can turn 180 quite easily. Without knowing how long he's been 'in the game' 50 properties would suggest some substantial leverage.

Let's hope the bulk of your guy's portfolio's isn't somewhere which can be badly affected by a major business closedown, or just generally in the UK decline of rental values into the future.

Also for Mr.Success there.. there are plenty of other landlords on the receiving end of the other side of lenders' nature. A small taster of a few landlords experiencing it on this thread (guy below has only 4 of his properties in arrears at the moment) with lenders just going LPA and taking the properties back.

if you look at businesses in general (not just BTL) - some businesses succeed, some businesses fail.
the businesses that fail are usually those with lack of planning or lack of structure and rarely through bad luck but if this is the case they have no contingency to rely on. so it's lack of planning.

you're points are very valid Dopester but they are due to lack of a solid business plan.
which is where i agree with you that many that are into BTL lack the business plan..

Thrugelmir

On the basis of these comments. BTL is again viable.

He as seen lots of repossessions (11 in the last week), he is selling them at 30% below 07 prices (but this is where the bad news for most future owners is) they are in the majority being purchased by professional BTLers (not your I have got a couple of BTL, but proper landlords that have being doing it for decades). The properties are going for around £70K and being rented out for around £575PM

On these figures that's a gross rental yield of 10%. A level which makes commercial sense.

Any residential investor that is investing because property is cheap and 30% below peak has no idea what they are doing.

When base returns to a more normal 4% - 5% , the properties above will still be fair value. And most likely will be changed little in price.

phil_b_2

Theres no doubt people could have benefited enormously from whats happened recently if they had been a little bit braver and jumped in. Various stocks I was watching would have made me pretty wealthy now if I'd had the balls to leave my money in them rather than cut and run after minor gains. Damn it!!

BTL'ers must have been loving the auction room a year ago.

Generali

chucky wrote: »

i would love to contribute but i would then be told that anecdotal information means nothing :o

Annecdote isn't meaningless but at the same time isn't the same thing as data.

The writer is an interesting bloke who seems to have made an awful lot of money from property.

He can also be pompus, patronising and dismissive but he does take a lot of insults so I can't say I blame him really.