Higher rate for Consent to let

N79

franklee wrote: »

I thought it was that leveraging is using a deposit to borrow thus amplifying the capital gains when the house value goes up (or losses when it goes down). You still need to look at straight yield as you need to service the debt which is where looking at the value of the property vs rent comes in to make sure "someone elses's" money covers paying the mortgage. For much of the boom landlords on the forums I read seemed happy with breaking even with rent of 4-6% of property value and mortgage rates not much different. But that's bubble talk, the traditional way landlords used to make money was in getting a profit from the rent, that maybe still be possible with HMOs I guess but then the costs are higher.

There are also profits (in the SE anyway) in the Housing Benefit part of the market (which overlaps with the HMO part) - provided that a LL is a reasonable size so the overhead costs are kept low and the properties are well chosen. I've finally taken the plunge into this market this year and I have done a good deal with a couple of local housing charities / councils. I can guess the type of T they will try to dump on me though I'm confident that my referencing will sort out the good and the bad.

Of course, there is always a risk that the government will change policy in the future so its not for the faint of heart!

franklee

N79 wrote: »

There are also profits (in the SE anyway) in the Housing Benefit part of the market (which overlaps with the HMO part) - provided that a LL is a reasonable size so the overhead costs are kept low and the properties are well chosen. I've finally taken the plunge into this market this year and I have done a good deal with a couple of local housing charities / councils. I can guess the type of T they will try to dump on me though I'm confident that my referencing will sort out the good and the bad.

Of course, there is always a risk that the government will change policy in the future so its not for the faint of heart!

Sounds interesting higher risk but also higher reward. If you don't mind my asking, what straight yield are you getting for your newly acquired properties, it'd be interesting to see how it compares to the less experienced and accidental landlord yields I've more often come across.