Mortgage News
Mortgage brokers urged to be proactive with landlord advice
A leading property expert has urged mortgage brokers to be more proactive in targeting landlords to ensure they are receiving the right levels of advice.
Speaking at this year’s Financial Service Expo in London, Kate Faulkner also warned landlords to visit mortgage brokers twice a year to ensure they are maximising their buy-to-let investment potential.
She outlined how most landlords could immediately solve tax relief issues through a consultation with a mortgage broker.
Talking on the future of buy-to-let, Faulkner said there was a need for greater understanding from both the intermediary market and landlords in terms of getting to grips with current market conditions and letting rules and regulations within each country and region.
“It is becoming more difficult for landlords to make money,” she said. “It’s certainly harder to get deals in the current market. I’ve never seen stock levels so low. Letting and estate agents are having a seriously tough time trying to get stock, it’s just not there.”
Faulkner said she thought there would be more concentration on capital growth although this would inevitably be restricted within certain areas where house price growth remained low.
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“What I would love to see and what I encourage all landlords to do now – because they have to build that capital growth in from the start – is to acquire properties they can bring back to life or just build,” said Faulkner. “Use cash where possible and then mortgage the property accordingly. I personally believe that nobody should be allowed to invest in a buy-to-let property until they have seen an adviser.”
Faulkner was particularly damning about solicitor firms and the lack of specialist buy-to-let conveyancing solutions they offer which was having a major impact on landlords. She suggested many legal firms are failing landlords by not offering the right types of conveyancing solutions to match their needs.
She added: “We do lots of seminars up and down the country and we believe that 95% of landlords hold property in an incorrect legal way. We have to work together as an industry to ensure that landlords are properly represented and not a good enough job is currently being done on their behalf. It is outrageous that the same conveyancing is being done for a buy-to-let investor as for a first-time buyer.”