All posts by Gareth Davies

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Buy-to-let property can be an excellent method of creating a long term investment for your future. It is popular with people that do not want to invest all their money in a traditional pension plan and would like to invest directly in an asset that they can see and manage themselves.

An important first step is to secure buy-to-let mortgages which are different from residential mortgages, such as for first time buyers of remortgage buyers, as the lenders look at the rental income from the property and have specific criteria for lending.

This includes a larger deposit of 25% or more of the property value and a rental income that is 125% of the interest payments at a prescribed rate which could be higher than interest rate you will pay during the introductory offer period.

It is important to ensure you have the right advice for your buy-to-let property. With independent advice from London City Mortgages we can show you the income you will need to secure a mortgage or find the best buy-to-let mortgage deal for your circumstances and make the online mortgage process easy for you.

Benefits of a buy-to-let property

A buy-to-let property can offer the benefits of a regular income and capital growth in the long term offering security for your future. To ensure success you need to know your target market to attract the desired tenants.

You must offer the right property in the right place at the right price.

By making the right investment your property could give you gross yields of 5% to 10% each year although you will need to meet the cost of the buy-to-let mortgage and maintenance costs of the property.

In addition, a property bought in an area with economic growth potential would mean more people moving to this area. This would help to increase demand for both rental and purchased properties. You would benefit from both increasing rental income and increasing property values in the future.

Once you have your first buy-to-let property you gain experience of the management process and it becomes easier to build a buy-to-let portfolio of properties. Buying more properties can also reduce the risk of your investments with income from various sources protecting you from void periods.

Securing a buy-to-let mortgage

If you cannot buy your property outright with cash, securing a mortgage for your buy-to-let property is essential. These mortgages are set-up on an interest only basis to maximise cashflow which produces the best return on your investment.

You will also need to take account of Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) for new buy-to-let properties which increased by 3% on the whole purchase value from 1 April 2016 as the following table shows:

Unlike a residential mortgage, for a buy-to-let mortgage the minimum deposit expected by the lenders is 25% of the property value and the best deals are offered with a deposit of 40% of the property value.

The interest rate you pay will be higher for a buy-to-let mortgage than residential due to the higher associated risks, although nevertheless competitive. With a loan to vale of 75% the rate could be as low as 2.79% and a loan to value of 60% is down to 2.35%.

Lenders also look at the rental income from the property and this must be at least 125% of the interest payments. Each lender has a prescribed rate which could be higher than interest rate you will pay during the introductory offer period. This level is set to ensure the purchase is affordable with void periods. Ultimately you should be looking for the highest possible rental income for the greatest yield in order to produce attractive buy-to-let investment returns.

The interest rate set could be from 5% to 6% and can change over time. If the rental income evidence is not as high as 125% of this rate the lender will not give you the mortgage. For example, if you’re buy-to-let property is valued at £200,000 and you have a deposit of 25% of £50,000 and borrow £150,000 the rental income must be £871.25 to £937.50 per month depending on the lender rate to be accepted.

If the maximum rent you can ask for is less than the minimum, you will need to increase your deposit (which reduces the mortgage loan) in order to secure an offer. In some cases, such as new-build homes, lenders will automatically ask for a larger deposit of 35% as they consider these properties a higher risk. The higher deposit makes it more likely that the rental income will meet the lenders criteria.

Like a residential mortgage, lenders expect you to prove your income as well as provide evidence the property rental income will be 125% of the lenders prescribed rate.

Remortgaging your buy-to-let

A buy-to-let mortgage can include an introductory offer period with an interest rate lower than the standard variable rate (SVR) usually from two to five years. The most popular types of mortgage products are as follows:

At the end of the mortgage offer period you can remortgage the property and low for another lower rate, just like a residential mortgage. Keeping the mortgage payments you pay as low as possible improves the return on your investment.

If the value of your property has increased significantly since you first bought it, you could also consider releasing some equity to buy another buy-to-let property. This process helps you to leverage your investment and improve the investment return as you only have to have a 25% to 40% deposit.

It is one of the benefits of a portfolio that could result in you almost doubling the value of your assets and rental income without you having to invest a significant amount of additional cash.

Managing your buy-to-let

Your buy-to-let property will have a number of ongoing costs which you as the landlord are responsible. There are regular maintenance cost for the property, a decision to make about management either you or a letting agent and tax to pay on the rental income.

Firstly you need to decide if you are going to manage your property yourself or if you will appoint a letting agent. If you manage this yourself you need to find the tenants, arrange the legal paperwork and manage this relationship.

Alternatively you can appoint a letting agent to manage your buy-to-let property on a day to basis. There will be a fee for providing this service of about 10% to 20% of the rental income.

There are also ongoing costs to take into account such as maintaining your buy-to-let. If the property has a gas supply as the landlord you will need to ensure the appliances are maintained and safety checks completed.

It is also your responsibility to make sure the electrical wiring is safe as well as any electrical equipment provided to the tenant to use. The landlord is also responsible to ensure the safety of the tenants and premises in the immediate vicinity from fire risks and to make tenants aware of emergency escape routes.

You are also responsible for paying tax on your rental income which you declare in your self assessment at the end of the tax year. You only pay tax on your profit and can deduct expenses from the rental income more details in our tax guide for landlords.

Some of the deductions you can make from the income are mortgage interest, wear and tear, insurance, letting agent fees, cleaning, legal fees, mortgage adviser fees, property magazine subscriptions and even overdraft charges.

Let-to-buy property

If you have been living in your existing home for a number of years with a residential mortgage and wish to move to a new property but keep your existing one, it is possible to consider a let-to-buy property mortgage.

In this case your existing property is likely to have increased in value since you original bought it and you can release equity to buy your new home. You may also have had an increase in your income over time which would put you in a strong position for let-to-buy.

The advantage with let-to-buy is you are likely to have a high level of equity in your existing property and this can be partially released by increase the loan to value up to 75% on your existing property.

The surplus equity would be paid as a deposit on your new home which could mean you do not need to find any further cash from your own savings.

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Buying your home is the largest purchase you are likely to make and before starting you need to determine how much money you have for a deposit and what you can afford to borrow. Lenders can provide you with a mortgage in principle and the amounts you can borrow are based on affordability taking into account your outgoings.

London City Mortgages can help you with this process whether you are a first time buyer or re-mortgaging your home or investing in a buy to let property. You can start by asking for a free online mortgage quotes from our adviser which will include helpful guide on the amount you are likely to secure from a mortgage.

What is a mortgage?

A mortgage is a loan from a lender taken out to buy a property or land. The length of the mortgage is usually 25 years but you can choose a shorter or longer term. The lender could insist on a shorter term, such as for older applicants, as they may have a maximum age limit for their mortgage.

The loan is secured against the value of your home until the end of the term or you pay off the mortgage, such as when you sell the property. If you cannot maintain the mortgage payments the lender may agree alternative repayment terms or repossess your home to sell in order to recover their loan.

Working out affordability

Lenders are required to determine if the mortgage you are applying for is affordable so you need to work out beforehand what you can afford. Lenders will reject applications that do not meet their stringent requirements so you need to do this exercise first to avoid disappointment later. Lenders will take into account your outgoings such as the following:

How much you can borrow from a lender will depend on your gross income and outgoings. If you are borrowing more than £500,000 they may also apply a cap of four times your gross income.

Lenders also apply a ‘stress test’ to see if you can afford paying up to 7% interest on your mortgage should interest rates rise further. They will want to see proof of your income and expenses such as your payslips and bank statements to ensure you can keep up the mortgage repayments.

Deposit for your home

Raising the deposit for a property can be difficult as property prices continue to rise, although there are many mortgages and schemes that allow you to place only a 5% deposit.

If you have a larger 10% deposit there will be a much greater choice of lenders and with a 25% deposit lender rates are very competitive. There is also assistance if your income is not high enough such as the government’s Help to Buy scheme for first time buyers and home movers. Housing Associations can also help you own your own home with Shared Ownership schemes.

Lenders require borrowers to show they can afford to commit to a property purchase by making a deposit. The larger the deposit the lower the risk to the lender and therefore they can offer a much better mortgage deal.

The amount you borrow is shown as a loan to value (LTV) percentage. For example, if you have a £20,000 deposit on a £200,000 property this would represent 10% of the property value. This represents a 90% loan to value and the mortgage is secured against this portion.

If your LTV is lower you will receive a lower interest rate from the lender as the risk to them is much lower. With a 75% mortgage LTV you can expect very good interest rates although with a 60% LTV you will receive the best rates in the market.

Paying back your mortgage

A mortgage from a lender is a loan and the amount you borrow from them is known as capital. The type of mortgage will depend on whether you want to repay the interest only or interest and capital repayment.

If you selected a repayment mortgage each month your payments would include interest on the loan and the repayment of capital. As you pay back the capital every month the interest you pay will reduce until at the end of the term you will fully own your property. As you are paying interest and capital the amount you pay each month is greater than an interest only mortgage.

If you select an interest only mortgage the payments you make will only repay the interest and at the end of the term the capital borrowed must be repaid as a single lump sum. As you are not paying off the capital with this option it means your monthly payments are lower than a repayment mortgage.

As an example, if you bought a home for £250,000 and had a £50,000 deposit, the loan to value would be 80% of the property value giving a mortgage of £200,000 for a 25 year term. Let’s say your mortgage rate was 2.75% this would mean your interest only payment would be £458 per month. If you had a repayment mortgage your payment would be £922 per month.

At the end of the 25 year term with the repayment mortgage you would own your own home with no more payments to make but with an interest only mortgage you would owe £200,000 to the lender.

With the changes in the Mortgage Market Review (MMR) lenders have tighter criteria for interest only mortgages and you would need to show you have a repayment vehicle, such as an Individual Savings Account (ISA), endowment or pension lump sum to repay the capital.

To keep the payments down in the early years, some lenders would allow you to combine both interest only and repayment and change this when your income is higher in the future.

Finding the right mortgage

After you have decided on the method of paying back your mortgage there are a number of mortgage types to consider are as follows:

The standard variable mortgage is the main basis from which all other types are developed. All lenders have a standard variable rate which is linked to the base rate set by the Bank of England. As the Bank changes their interest rate the standard variable rates will also change making this option volatile over time.

Many lenders make special offers to borrowers with a discount mortgage that is cheaper than the standard variable for a fixed period of time, such as two or three years. At the end of the period the rate returns to the standard variable and during the term can go up or down with interest rates. Another version is the tracker mortgage which is linked specifically to base rates and can change over time.

One way to limit how high the rate rises is to have a capped mortgage and this would cost you more as it is guaranteed not to rise above a certain level.

If you would rather not have a variable rate you can have a fixed rate mortgage although this is slightly more expensive as the monthly cost is guaranteed not to change. A fixed term mortgage has a typical term of two to five years and is popular when interest rates are predicted to rise in the future.

As an alternative you could consider an offset mortgage where you link your savings and current account to your mortgage. The advantage here is you continue to pay your mortgage each month and make over payments using your savings.  This can reduce the amount of interest you pay over the term or you can even clear the mortgage and own the property early.