Buy-to-let Landlords - filling a need or evil capitalists?

seven-day-weekend

I have noticed there is a lot of venom directed towards BTL landlords on this site.

I ask myself, why is this? Surely they are fulfilling a need for rented housing at a time when social housing is scarce and in decline?

Why the hatred then?

Your contribution welcomed.

(To declare my interest, I have one BTL property, without a mortgage, which is let at market rent).

missbiggles1

seven-day-weekend wrote: »

I have noticed there is a lot of venom directed towards BTL landlords on this site.

I ask myself, why is this? Surely they are fulfilling a need for rented housing at a time when social housing is scarce and in decline?

Why the hatred then?

Your contribution welcomed.

(To declare my interest, I have one BTL property, without a mortgage, which is let at market rent).

I start off with the same opinion as you but tend to change it when I read some things that BTLs say on the house renting board.

seven-day-weekend

missbiggles1 wrote: »

I start off with the same opinion as you but tend to change it when I read some things that BTLs say on the house renting board.

Such as? .

Generali

seven-day-weekend wrote: »

I have noticed there is a lot of venom directed towards BTL landlords on this site.

I ask myself, why is this? Surely they are fulfilling a need for rented housing at a time when social housing is scarce and in decline?

Why the hatred then?

Your contribution welcomed.

(To declare my interest, I have one BTL property, without a mortgage, which is let at market rent).

The rentier classes will never be loved. You could have asked the same question a thousand years ago and got the same answer.

My grandmother was so poor that she collected the rent for the LL from the row of terraces in return for a discount on the rent in the 1950s. Her neighbours hated her as a result but given that she had to choose between heat and light at the end of a cold week she had little choice.

lisyloo

I think it's mainly envy.
They've done very well in recent years because they did something and took risks.
Others don't like to see people succeeding easily and overlook the effort and risks.

They also perceive btls as driving up prices and stopping oo's getting homes.
We don't see the same antagonism towards people driving up the price of a Van Gogh or banksy becuase people feel that housing is a basic need.
Shelter IS a basic need, owning is NOT.

So basically jealousy towards people who've done well apparently relatively easily and an entitlement for what they expect for themselves.

FWIW i own a PPR and rent a pied a terre in London for work.
I'm perfectly happy for a BTL lanlord to take the risk on the work property and I don't mind if they do well (in fact they have over the past few years).
They took the risk, I didn't and don't want the risk.

Let me ask YOU a question?
Why are YOU bothered about petty jealousies and unjustified feelings of entitlements of others?
They are wrong, ignore them.

missbiggles1

seven-day-weekend wrote: »

Such as? .

Long thread where one LL had excellent long standing tenants so hadn't put the rent up for a few years. Other LLs started ranting about how his business shouldn't be subsidising their life style and how he was pretty much letting the side down.

Left a bad taste.

ognum

missbiggles1 wrote: »

Long thread where one LL had excellent long standing tenants so hadn't put the rent up for a few years. Other LLs started ranting about how his business shouldn't be subsidising their life style and how he was pretty much letting the side down.

Left a bad taste.

Interesting how we all read things in different ways, I read that thread to say put rent up in small amounts every couple of years instead of one big lump in one go.

Didn't read anything about letting the side down, there is no unity in LL just as there isn't in tenants.

Interesting to read from your perspective.

lisyloo

Other LLs started ranting about how his business shouldn't be subsidising their life style and how he was pretty much letting the side down.

Left a bad taste.

There are some great aspects of forums and also some bad ones too.
Getting wound up about people who are probably expressing gut feelings without thinking them through is not really a very good use of time.

The LL is not subsidising their lifestyle.
He/She is making a shrewd business investment in the relationship aspect of the business.
As in all businesses you will find some are prepared to put more effort into the relationship side of things and also get some satisfaction from providing a service and others who prefer making a quick buck and don't care about people.
I personally don't think BTL attracts bad people any more than say car sales or many other businesses. Forums do attract some vitriolic expression that doesn't happen in real life.
Perhaps you need to think about how you will deal with these airchair keyboard warriors in future? but I'm not sure it's representative of the industry at all.

There is most certainly concern about housing and in any competitive scenario there is the potential for agressive behaviour (try taking the tube everyday).

missbiggles1

ognum wrote: »

Interesting how we all read things in different ways, I read that thread to say put rent up in small amounts every couple of years instead of one big lump in one go.

Didn't read anything about letting the side down, there is no unity in LL just as there isn't in tenants.

Interesting to read from your perspective.

TBF, it was mainly one person who was saying that and letting the side down was an implication rather than an overt statement.

missbiggles1

lisyloo wrote: »

There are some great aspects of forums and also some bad ones too.
Getting wound up about people who are probably expressing gut feelings without thinking them through is not really a very good use of time.

The LL is not subsidising their lifestyle.
He/She is making a shrewd business investment in the relationship aspect of the business.
As in all businesses you will find some are prepared to put more effort into the relationship side of things and also get some satisfaction from providing a service and others who prefer making a quick buck and don't care about people.
I personally don't think BTL attracts bad people any more than say car sales or many other businesses. Forums do attract some vitriolic expression that doesn't happen in real life.
Perhaps you need to think about how you will deal with these airchair keyboard warriors in future? but I'm not sure it's representative of the industry at all.

There is most certainly concern about housing and in any competitive scenario there is the potential for agressive behaviour (try taking the tube everyday).

Why should I need to deal with them, I was just browsing an unrelated forum.

GwylimT

I can understand people being frustrated, here if a starter home goes onto the market a lot are bought by landlords, which as a first time buyer must be very frustrating.

We own a property we let out, it wasn't originally intended. My wife purchased it before we met and I already owned a property. We only kept the home as it could be a good nest egg if in the future we struggle to cover the costs of her disability.

Our tenants are planning to move out in August, they have been in the property for ten years, we do everything by the book and we maintain the property well.