Posts with tag: property investment

Half of landlords rely on portfolio for income

Published On: June 26, 2015 at 9:10 am

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With the buy-to-let market continuing to surge on the back of low savings rates and stock market volatility, new research suggests that nearly half of investors rely on their property portfolio to provide a large supplement to their paid income.

A study of over 500 landlords from PropertyLetByUs.com found that 40% gain an income from their buy-to-let investment, with half stating it is their main source of money.

Jobs

The study suggests that just over one-third of buy-to-let landlords have a full-time job, with 5% working part-time. One on six working landlords said they would like to give up their jobs to work full-time.[1]

Additionally, the research found that half of buy-to-let landlords have a LTV of 20%, with 36% of landlords having a LTV of 40%. One of five were said to be enjoying annual yields of between 15% and 30%, with a quarter having yields between 5-10%.[1]

Half of landlords rely on portfolio for income

Half of landlords rely on portfolio for income

‘Buy-to-let continues to provide an excellent return on investment, with many landlords able to take an income, as well as enjoy the capital growth of the property,’ commented Jane Morris, Managing Director of Property Let By Us.[1]

She continued by saying that, ‘recent research from the HomeLet Rental Index shows that rents across the UK are 10.2% higher than a year ago. The average rent on a tenancy signed in the UK during the first quarter of 2015 was £902, compared to £819 for tenancies signed during the first quarter of 2014.’[1]

‘Mortgage rates remain at record lows which is helping buy-to-let landlords achieve higher yields. So for potential investors with enough money to raise a big deposit, buy-to-let is highly attractive, compared to the low savings rates and stock market volatility,’ she concluded.[1]

[1] ‘Landlord & Buy-to-let’ Issue 59 June 2015

 

 

Buy to Let in Oxford for Strong Demand

Published On: June 20, 2015 at 10:11 am

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Categories: Property News

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Demand for rental property in Oxford is extremely strong, especially from young professionals. The area is a great place for buying to let.

As well as the universities, Oxford homes many medical institutions, where high numbers of academics and medics are on placements or temporary contracts.

Buy to Let in Oxford for Strong Demand

Buy to Let in Oxford for Strong Demand

Letting agents claim that demand is so strong that prospective tenants sometimes queue outside on the street so that they get the first pick of new properties.

Licenses

Private rental sector housing that is occupied by three or more people (including children) and forms two or more households requires a license. Houses with two occupants do not need a license.

Where to invest

East Oxford, also called Cowley, is becoming more popular. The area is walking distance from the city centre and has smaller but affordable Victorian terraces. These charming homes provide better investments than properties in areas such as Jericho and North Oxford, where prices near seven figures.

Cowley is a cosmopolitan place with an eclectic mix of people and amenities, including nice pubs and restaurants. Traditionally, it was full of students, but now, professionals are moving into the area.

Cheaper properties can be found just outside Cowley in Littlemore.

Property prices

A one-bedroom apartment in Cowley costs around £250,000 with three-bedroom houses priced at over £450,000.

In Littlemore, one-bedroom flats go for about £200,000 and command a monthly rent of £850. A three-bedroom house costs around £280,000, for rent of £1,100 per month.

Pensioners favour investing in property

Published On: June 17, 2015 at 3:07 pm

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Categories: Property News

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New pension freedoms that came into force in April of this year have given retirees more investment opportunities than ever before. Many pensioners are now looking to invest in a property as opposed to annuities, shares and bonds.

Ever since the new rules, which gave pensioners full control of their retirement funds, 70% have either withdrawn all or part of their monies, with domestic and international property investment proving highly popular.

Stable option

According to the latest Global Real Estate Outlook report from property investment company IP Global property is the most stable option for a number of investors.

The report shows that property prices in London and Manchester increased the most in England during the last year. Prices in Greater London rose by 12% in the last twelve months. Average Manchester property prices are still around half of what they are in the capital. However, projections suggest that prices in the city will grow by 26.4% by 2019.[1]

Pensioners favour investing in property

Pensioners favour investing in property

Overseas opportunities

In addition, the current strength of Pound Sterling against the Euro is convincing some retirees to invest in overseas property, with the chance of more favourable prices and a continued income.

Much further overseas, cities such as Brisbane are experiencing growing rental demand, which means investors can easily secure a yield of more than 5% per annum.

It must be noted however that the new freedoms on offer for pensioners have left many seeking more advice on just what they can do with their savings. More qualified information should be made available for retirees to give them the best understanding on how to invest their nest egg.

[1] http://www.propertywire.com/news/europe/uk-pensioners-buyers-invest-2015061610633.html

 

 

Estate Agent Launches Property Investment Fund

Published On: June 10, 2015 at 2:47 pm

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The UK’s largest estate agent chain, Countrywide, and Hermes Investment Management have launched a residential property fund.

Directed towards institutional investors, the new Vista fund provides access to the private rental sector.

Vista will focus on high-quality, modern, purpose-built residential property in areas with strong core economies.

Estate Agent Launches Property Investment Fund

Estate Agent Launches Property Investment Fund

Greater London investments will be capped to account for just a third of the overall portfolio.

Vista is starting out with £95m of commitments from cornerstone investors and has already invested in Manchester, Birmingham and Nottingham with a combined value of £13m.

Hermes Chief Executive, Chris Taylor, says: “The UK private rented sector has delivered attractive, risk adjusted returns over recent years and we believe that it will continue to perform in a market that is facing a chronic mismatch between demand and supply.

“This demand is further underpinned by demographic and lifestyle trends, and coupled with a shift towards greater urbanisation, long-term institutional capital invested in the private rented sector can play a key role in delivering much needed new housing supply.”

He continues: “We also believe an opportunity exists to establish best practices in the delivery and management of purpose-built private rental sector affordable rent throughout the UK.

“We are determined to deliver an extremely attractive UK private rental sector investment solution to investors and tenants alike.”1 

Countrywide’s Finance Director, Graham Bell, adds: “As the UK’s largest property service group with over 1,300 branches, the size and scale of Countrywide means it is uniquely placed to play a leading role in building a large residential investment vehicle.

“Countrywide’s proprietary data and on-the-ground knowledge, generated from over 12,000 employees working in their local property markets, allows us to identify specific areas, which combine strong economic growth potential and attractive yields.

“Our integrated letting and property management platform, with over 65,000 properties let and managed, allows us to drive operating performance and minimise gross-to-net erosion.”

Bell concludes: “Finally, both our Lambert Smith Hampton division and our large land and new homes team give us access to an extensive network of relationships across the UK, which allows us to source attractive investment opportunities.”1

1 http://www.propertyindustryeye.com/countrywide-launches-residential-property-fund/

 

Peer-to-Peer Lender Introduces First Loan

Published On: June 8, 2015 at 2:56 pm

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Categories: Finance News

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A new peer-to-peer lender has introduced its first loan product, hoping to change the way people invest.

Crowdstacker will allegedly be one of the first peer-to-peer platforms to provide retail investors the chance to lend money to non-listed yet established, mid-sized and financially stable companies.

Peer-to-Peer Lender Introduces First Loan

Peer-to-Peer Lender Introduces First Loan

Crowdstacker will fill the gap for larger ticket funding of up to £50m, which is sought by businesses with strong trading track records and a proven ability to provide a strong return on investment (ROI), but which find it difficult to secure lending due to stricter terms by banks after the global financial crisis.

Its first product, The Quanta Loans, has been created for Quanta Group, a nationwide property investment firm that buys run down homes, renovates and resells them. Quanta has bought and sold over 500 properties in the UK and plans to use the target £3m to purchase some of the five to ten high quality properties that they currently have to turn down every month.

Investors can lend anything from £700 and are offered a 6.8% return per year over the three-year term of the product. Interest is paid in quarterly instalments. Houses and flats bought with the money will be refurbished and quickly sold, in an attempt to ensure changes in the buy-to-let market do not affect the investment.

CEO of Crowdstacker, Karteek Patel, says: “We see Crowdstacker as the democratisation of higher calibre investment options.

“We know from our research that the average man or woman on the street isn’t yet engaging with investment opportunities such as crowdfunding because they don’t know what it is, or they are put off by not knowing exactly where their money will be spent.”

Patel continues: “The average consumer investor is also put off other sophisticated and less risky investments such as bonds or equities, outside of their standard pensions or managed ISA funds, because they don’t understand how they work or they don’t have the higher sums of money typically required.

“Crowdstacker aims to bridge this gap. We’re offering crowdfunding style simplicity combined with quality investment opportunities; we’ll only work with businesses that have passed our stringent due diligence tests.

“Quanta was deemed eligible to be one of the select products we will be offering because of its solid track record in its industry, plus the ability to provide further protection for lenders by using the properties purchased as collateral against the loaned capital.”1 

1 http://www.financialreporter.co.uk/specialist-lending/new-peer-to-peer-lender-launches.html?utm_content=buffer8c573&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer

 

Fraudsters Imprisoned for Selling £4.3m of Worthless Land

Published On: June 3, 2015 at 9:56 am

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Eight fraudsters have been convicted for taking part in a land banking investment scam, which lost investors around £4.3m.

Five of the criminals have been given prison sentences totalling 26 years.

Fraudsters Imprisoned for Selling £4.3m of Worthless Land

Fraudsters Imprisoned for Selling £4.3m of Worthless Land

The scammers cold called savers and pledged high returns on plots of land. They said that the land could be sold to property developers at a huge profit. However the land was agricultural and there is little or no chance that permission would be granted. In some cases, the fraudsters did not own the land.

Regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), which brought the case, says: “Using sales scripts, misleading promotional material and high-pressure sales techniques, they lied about the current and future value of the land. People were persuaded to purchase land at a vastly inflated price, on the false promise of a substantial profit.”1 

The defendants were convicted of offences including conspiracy to defraud, conducting investment business without authorisation from the regulator, possessing criminal property and providing false and misleading information to the regulator.

The judge said the scheme was “very substantial and deliberate fraud on the public.” He described the operation as “a subtle and cruel fraud because it involves the concept of owning land, a commodity that the public are bound to think has value and on which they cannot lose and on which they can easily be persuaded that they can make very substantial profits.”1

Four of the criminals were banned from being company directors for between five and ten years. Two others had already been disqualified. All defendants are having confiscation proceedings brought against them.

The FCA’s Georgina Philippou says: “We will take strong action, through both the civil and criminal courts, against those who operate illegal investment schemes and those who assist them.

“People put their homes and retirements at risk on the back of promises of high returns that were never going to be realised. The severity of the sentences shows how seriously the courts view this kind of offending.”1

The scammers used three companies – Plott Investments Ltd changed its name to Plott UK Ltd, European Property Investments (UK) Ltd and Stirling Alexander Ltd.

1 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/personalfinance/investing/11644419/Five-imprisoned-for-duping-investors-into-spending-4.3m-on-worthless-land.html