With already complex regulation on landlords today and more changes on the horizon, Heather Cara, senior manager at BM Solutions, talks to broker, Charlie Baker, about how she supports her landlords to be their best
Promoting a quality private rented sector (PRS) is important to us at BM Solutions because we know that improving the market for tenants helps lenders and brokers too. We work hard to support this, from campaigning for a national landlord register to education on improving quality standards and energy efficiency in rented properties.
We welcome measures that address the quality issues in the market and promote cooperation and knowledge-sharing across the industry to help drive up standards.
So we were thrilled to recently support one such event in Norwich, hosted by Paradigm Mortgage Services.
Coming together
Along with Paradigm Mortgage Club and with the support of Balanced Financial Services, we brought together different parts of the local private rented sector (PRS) to share knowledge and collaborate on how to promote quality while building successful letting businesses.
This included local landlords, brokers, lenders, tax specialists, solicitors, local authorities, the Eastern Landlords Association and letting agents.
Feedback from the event was fantastic, and we plan to replicate it in other parts of the country.
We caught up with Charlie Baker of Balanced Financial Services Ltd, who helped develop the event and was one of the speakers. We discussed her experience of the event and how her firm supports landlords in her day-to-day work.
“I’m a mortgage broker as well as a landlord,” said Charlie. “I also volunteer on the board of the Eastern Landlords Association (ELA), currently as secretary. I have been working in financial services for over 23 years and specialising in buy-to-let mortgages for over 10. This, combined with being a landlord, gives me a good overview of the challenges landlords face, from financing and taxation to public perception.”
“Paradigm’s vision for the event was great because it focused on quality, locally relevant businesses and encouraged cross-industry collaboration
“This made sense to me because we all have a stake in creating a well-functioning private rented sector (PRS). The success of local landlords equates to the success of Balanced Financial Services and my local community.
“I always check to ensure I’m not working with rogue landlords. They make things difficult for everyone, from tenants and brokers to other landlords and do nothing to improve the public perception of the private rented sector. If I submit an application to a lender from a rogue landlord, not only is it a huge waste of everyone’s time, because the lenders make appropriate checks, but it also reflects badly on me. It’s a no-brainer that we don’t work with rogue landlords and we help and support good landlords to improve where possible.”
Specialist expertise
Charlie continued: “The event enabled me to speak to local landlords about choosing the right mortgage broker, the importance of independent mortgage advice and wider guidance about the rental market.
“Everyone in the room was fully engaged with the presentations. They were designed to be short, engaging and different to what’s on offer at the usual roadshows, where landlords comment that you sometimes hear the same thing over and again. It was important to all involved that the speakers avoided sales pitches and talked about something landlords may not have heard before so the event was beneficial to them.
“For example, the tax specialist had some fascinating insights on inheritance tax (IHT) and wills instead of the usual focus on limited company buy-to-let. Lots of attendees learned something new and one actually changed their long-term strategy because of the presentation.
“BM also talked us through its Landlord Retrofit Tool which had the whole room taking notes and gave us an overview of the current buy-to-let market. Plus we had neighbouring local authorities present, which gave us an insight into how they are working to improve the PRS, through licensing and other measures. It was refreshing to see the councils engaging with the best of local landlords, as they sadly spend much of their time dealing with the minority that are more challenging.
“It was incredibly useful to have this much professional expertise in one room and for everyone to build relationships with trusted local businesses. It was also awesome seeing local landlords focused on and committed to working for a better PRS.”
Supporting landlords
Charlie specialises in the buy-to-let market but believes all brokers can help and add value to their clients by signposting them to the right information.
She explains: “You don’t have to be an expert, and it’s not our job as brokers to make business decisions for our clients, but you do need to know where they can find trusted information to help them.
“I send all my new landlord clients a factsheet with a run-down on their main responsibilities, such as tax and safety certificates.
Balanced also has a dedicated Buy-to-Let Hub on our website containing a wealth of information useful to landlords, from mortgages to regulation, including a new page to help landlords support their tenants. There are also links to other guides and sources of information, like the government website, which is really informative,
“This is important because landlords can’t plead ignorance of the rules and fines for non-compliance can be significant. Even those who use a letting agent are still ultimately responsible for being compliant and many landlords may not be aware of that.”
Charlie’s landlord clients occasionally call her to check if they are doing the right thing, trusting her as a business adviser as well as a broker. “I can talk to them generally about tax or regulation without giving advice and ask questions to encourage consideration of the implications of their plans. Of course, I always recommend they see an independent, PRS-experienced tax adviser,” she says. “It’s an area where landlords can easily trip up.”
Charlie adds: “I also recommend that brokers encourage their landlord clients to join a professional association, such as the National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA), which has masses of useful resources, or local organisations, such as the Eastern Landlords Association, which focus on their specific markets and can be invaluable on issues such as selective licensing.
“The vast majority of landlords are good people who want to do the best they can for their tenants. We can support them in being good, successful landlords by making sure they understand their obligations and have access to information they can trust. This in turn gives them access to more cost-effective lending options which improves their choices and results in positive outcomes for all involved.”
At BM Solutions, we encourage and offer support to brokers who want to add more value to their landlord clients and ultimately support a thriving PRS.
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