Wednesday 19 June 2013 | RSS Feed

Buy to Let News

Landlords see improvement in finance availability

The proportion of landlords who think that buy-to-let finance is more freely available is at the highest level since the financial crisis, a survey by Paragon Mortgages has found.

36 month ASTs should be the new normal

A practical alternative to the 12 month assured shorthold tenancy restriction insisted upon by lenders should be 36 months with “special conditions” says lettings consultant David Lawrenson.

Avelo Trigold launches B2L sourcing tool

Avelo Trigold has teamed up with a panel of the UK’s leading buy-to-let providers to launch a new buy-to-let sourcing tool.

Landlords still looking to buy

Landlords remain keen to buy despite softening tenant demand, research from the Association of Residential Letting Agents has revealed.

Hearthstone adds first Scottish homes to fund

Hearthstone Investments, the specialist residential property fund manager, has completed a deal with Miller Homes to acquire Scottish residential property for its TM Hearthstone UK Residential Property Fund.

Letting agency fees force renters into debt

Shelter is calling for an end to letting agency fees following an investigation which shows that letting agency fees could be pushing renters into debt.

Dragonfly launches interest only BTL loan

Dragonfly Property Finance has announced the launch of a 4 and 5-year interest-only buy-to-let loan.

Pressure on lenders to cut rental restrictions

David Lawrenson, of private rental consultants www.LettingFocus.com, celebrates a victory after the London Assembly accepts his firm’s evidence on the private rented sector and will be used as a key recommendation.

TBMC offers new B2L range from Shawbrook

TBMC, the buy-to-let and commercial mortgage specialist, has launched a new range of buy-to-let mortgages from Shawbrook Bank.

Accord B2L expands solicitor panel

Accord is widening its conveyancing panel for buy-to-let business Accord Buy To Let.

House prices outpace rental yields

House prices are growing faster than average monthly rents in some parts of the country resulting in a slight decrease in yields over the past month, Countrywide’s monthly lettings index shows.

Solicitor calls on landlords to use DPS

Goldsmith Williams is urging all landlords to comply with the government’s tenancy deposit protection law and ring fence deposits in an official protection scheme.

Aldermore launches B2L proposition

Aldermore has launched a new online service for landlords and brokers which provides a single point of access to information regardless of portfolio size.

Let Alliance launches non-standard B2L insurance

Let Alliance, the specialist landlord building and contents insurance provider, has launched a new non-standard landlord insurance service for financial advisers.

Rents undershoot inflation

Rents in the private sector in England continue to undershoot inflation and underline the need for increased house building in areas of high demand, the British Property Federation said today.

ARLA calls for English rental regulation to keep up

The Association of Residential Letting Agents has warned that tenants in England could soon be less well protected than their Scottish and Welsh counterparts due to lagging rental regulation.

Landlords want more advice

Landlords across the country are hungry for help and advice according to a survey commissioned by buy-to-let lender Paragon Mortgages.

Kent Reliance launches expat B2L mortgage

Kent Reliance has launched a buy-to-let mortgage for people who are temporarily living or working outside the UK.

NLA to accredit all members by 2020

The National Landlords Association has committed to accredit all landlord members by 2020.

Paragon reports 15pc rise in buy-to-let lending

The Paragon Group has reported a 15% increase in buy-to-let lending in its half-year results for the six months to 31 March.

Rent Check report reveals value of rental market

The private rented sector continues to be the fastest growing tenure in England accounting for 3.8m homes amounting to 17% of all households, research from BDRC Continental and Allsop LLP claimed.

London rents on the rise

London saw average advertised increase for the first time in four months this April, research from Move with Us has revealed.

Rents at highest level since November

Rents in April increased to the highest level since November 2012, the latest Buy-to-Let Index from LSL Property Services has revealed.

TMW revamps B2L range

The Mortgage Works has refreshed its buy-to-let mortgage range for first time landlords.

London rental price increase slows by half

The rate of increase of average rents within Greater London has almost halved over the past two years, April’s HomeLet Rental Index has found.

B2L landlords could face legal action

PropertyReclaim.com has warned that landlords and agents face the real threat of fines if new immigration laws proposed in the Queen’ Speech are introduced.

Accord cuts BTL rates up to 0.30pc

Accord Mortgages has cut rates by up to 0.30% on its buy-to-let range across its fixed and tracker products.

B2L lending reaches £4.2bn

Gross mortgage lending to buy-to-let sector reached £4.2bn in the first quarter of 2013, data from the Council of Mortgage Lenders has revealed.

Landlords hit by Immigration Bill in Queen’s Speech

The coalition government has announced plans to force landlords to vet a tenant's right to live in the UK before agreeing a tenancy.

Mortgage mis-selling claims a potential threat

The industry needs to prepare itself for a spate of mischievous mortgage mis-selling claims according to Goldsmith Williams’ Eddie Goldsmith.

B2L could be in for a seismic change

The formation of a new taskforce to connect investors with opportunities for long term investment in the private rented sector could cause a seismic change in the buy-to-let industry, Goldsmith Williams has claimed, writes Ryan...

Mortgage Trust revamps range

Specialist buy-to-let lender Mortgage Trust has launched five new limited edition products.

Mortgage Trust launches new BTL loans

Specialist buy-to-let lender Mortgage Trust has launched five new limited edition products.

Geared B2L investors still making losses

Five year geared buy-to-let investors are still making losses, Brian Hall founder of The Model Works, claims.

Keystone revamps mortgage range

Keystone Buy to Let Mortgages has 5-year fixed rate mortgages with rates starting at 4.88%.

B2L rates down 0.33pc

Buy-to-let rates fell by an average of 0.33% during the first quarter of 2013, research from specialist broker Mortgages for Business has found.

SBSLS offer Shawbrook’s secured B2L products

Sesame Bankhall Specialist Lending Services has been chosen as a preferred partner for Shawbrook Bank’s secured loan buy-to-let products.

The Buy to Let Business Mortgage Club adds TMW to panel

The Buy to Let Business Mortgage Club has added The Mortgage Works to its expanding lender panel.

Landlords more optimistic for PRS prospects

Landlord optimism is at the highest level for almost three years, a survey by specialist buy-to-let lender Paragon Mortgages has revealed, writes Ryan Fowler.

Ray Boulger: No let up from Let-to-buy

Let-to-buy to buy activity saw a significant increase in 2012 and shows no sign of abating in 2013, says Ray Boulger, senior technical manager at John Charcol.

TMA adds TBMC to panel

The Mortgage Alliance has added The Business Mortgage Company to its lender panel.

Tenants stay for record time

Tenants are now staying in one property for a record duration of 20 months, the latest research from the Association of Residential Letting Agents has revealed.

Paragon gets ‘appy

Paragon Mortgages has launched an android version of its CaseTracking app for intermediaries.

HSBC identifies B2L Hotspots

Southampton is the best place in the UK for buy-to-let investors, research from HSBC has found, writes Ryan Fowler.

Rents up for first time in four months

Rents grew by 0.5% in March and reversed a four-month downward trend, the latest LSL Buy-to-Let Index has revealed, writes Ryan Fowler.

Buy-to-let alternative finance use at record high

Buy-to-let investments are the most popular use for alternative lending, the latest West One Broker Sentiment Survey has revealed, writes Ryan Fowler.

Visit Shawbrook at the Property Investor Show

Shawbrook Bank will be exhibiting at the Property Investor Show on the 19th and 20th April 2013 for the second year in a row, to meet and understand the needs of more property professionals.

Letting agents to be regulated

UK letting agents are to be regulated for the first time after the government amended the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill, writes Ryan Fowler.

Small pays big in buy-to-let

One and two-bedroomed properties deliver the highest rental returns with average yields of 6.8% and 6.4% respectively, data from Countrywide shows.

Landlords welcome 11th hour regulation of letting agents

Landlords and tenants are a step closer to securing protection from rogue letting agents after the government today proposed an eleventh hour amendment to the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill.

Average rents reduced in first quarter

The average advertised rent in Great Britain fell by around 0.43% in the first quarter of 2013 according to the Move with Us Rental Index.

Valuer concerns over licensing scheme challenges

Surveyors have raised concerns over the challenges which may emerge from the growing use of selective licensing schemes which look set to become widespread across the UK.