Now Is A Great Time To Buy to Let

Published on: 17 Jul, 2012
Updated on: 4 Aug, 2012

By Patricia Woodbridge,

Director, Seymours Letting and Management Services

In the first of a three part series on buying property to let Patricia says why now is a great time to enter the market. For other articles in this series see the ‘Property Features’ section under Ads-Property.

Patricia Woodbridge, Seymours Director

Now is a seriously good time to consider investing in property to rent out. In the 20 years I have been involved in letting and management services in Surrey, there have been few better moments to consider becoming a landlord. Here are the main reasons:

Mortgages

Interest rates remain low and residential mortgages as a percentage of take home money are at their lowest for 10 years, according to the Nationwide.

Buy-to-let mortgages are also relatively low although, the Council of Mortgage Lenders reports the average maximum loan-to-value from lenders in the first quarter this year at 75%.

Returns on investment

While banks continue to offer very low rates on savings, investors in property have seen excellent returns. The Association of Residential Letting Agents (ARLA), puts returns at 11.39% on cash purchases across all regions over the 5 years to 2006.

Prices

And prices? These have remained steady in prime locations like Guildford and Godalming, stabilising radically compared to the giddy pre-2008 years.

Demand for rental accommodation has also risen significantly from people who have sold their house and are now renting while they take time to look around for a new home. This spring private renters counted for 16.5% of the total rental market, according to Nationwide, which was the highest level in 40 years.

Interest

More and more we’re getting interest from people considering property as a good, long-term investment, both for capital growth and steady healthy rental income. This really struck us when 50 potential landlords attended our first Seymours Investors’ Evening in Guildford on a cold February evening earlier this year. The mortgage numbers also bear this out with new buy-to-let lending up by a huge 32% on the first quarter in 2011 (Council of Mortgage Lending figures).

In the next part in this series of articles Patricia will give nine top tips for first time landlords.

Patricia Woodbridge can be contacted on Tel. (01483) 45 77 22 or at info@seymours-letting.co.uk . And Seymours Letting & Management Services Ltd are at www.seymours-letting.co.uk.