Some advice please

WeaponX

I'm looking to buy a house. Though in around 6 months I might be relocated with work. If that happens I would look to rent out the house. How easy is it to do this? I suppose I would need to notify my mortgage provider right. Would I need to do anything else?

DannyboyMidlands

How far away is the likely relocation? Won't you be wanting to buy there? Why not just wait for 6 months before buying?

Besides all the other hassles a house you chose to live in may not be a very good rental property and vice versa.

kingstreet

You need to study the legal responsibilities of being a landlord
You need to ask your lender for consent to let
You need to alter your buildings insurance to a landlord policy
You need to do your sums to ensure rent/mortgage/tax all works out
You need to decide if you want to use an agent
You need to think about where you're going to live

Gonzo33

As an 'accidental' LL due to my husbands work I would categorically say to wait until you know you are being relocated, or not as the case maybe. Other people may say it is the best thing they ever did, but all in all I think it is more stress than it is worth.

From a practical point of view KingStreet is spot on.

Sugared-frog

I think the others are right to suggest waiting but I do know that our existing mortgage company would not give us either Consent to Let or Buy to Let mortgage (not that we have tried to but because we bought a second property they rang us to tell us that). (We need to do work on the new property so decided not to sell at the same time plus some other problems with the existing property). So you can't just assume you would get either without having to re-mortgage again.

sonastin

In the eyes of the lender it would look decidedly suspicious if you took on a residential mortgage and then in 6 months time tried to convert it to a rental property. Your motives might be innocent but to an independant 3rd party it might not appear that way.

Bearing in mind that:
- you might not find a property you want to buy immediately; and
- on average, property purchases take a few months to go from initial offer to completion

...how long do you think you'll actually get to live in this property before you find yourself relocating?

If you have found a great place to buy and relocation looks likely, why not go down the buy-to-let route now? You will probably find it easier to revert to residential mortgage after your period away (if its temporary) than you'd find it getting consent to let within the first few months of owning a residential property.