Landlords selling up rental properties

What does ‘pouring their money into super instead’ mean ?
I don’t think we are losing lots of rentals here (well I can only speak for my area) and it’s not been noticed
One of my grandaughters who has been travelling the East over a year with a period in Australia was telling me how expensive it is down there and how a lot of people are living in hostels as they can’t afford rentals Maybe that was just the area she was in I don’t know it just came up in conversation

I think ‘pouring their money into super instead’ means putting as much money as they can into their super-annuated pensions.

My DD in Oz is always on about their ‘super’ and how they will have to keep working until they are 70+.

It’s not that great down under either!

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Landlords are selling up because the Labour government have also pledged to scrap section 21 of the housing act, which (in theory) makes it easy to evict tenants. In practice it is a lengthy and expensive process for the LL unless they have all their ducks in a row. One wrong piece of information or missed paperwork can scupper the entire process and very few non professional LLs get it right. The other route to eviction is section 8 (rent arrears or anti social behaviour) which is even more difficult to secure a possession order.

LLs are scared that Labour will introduce rent caps or even a rent freeze. They have had it far too easy for far too long and something needs to address the power balance.

I rented in the private section for many years and made it my business to inform myself of my rights. Knowledge is power.

How many bought property to rent out after the 2008 banking crash because it gave a higher return than conventional risk free investment? Perhaps as interest rates improve, being a landlord is not so attractive. By selling rental properties, it will mean more properties for sale and prices will come down with a trickle down effect to help first time buyers. That's the theory anyway.

I do hope the new government introduce legislation to give tenants greater security. It's been many years since I rented but it was a great peace of mind to know I had security of tenure.

Pouring money into super means selling your property for around $1,000,000- $2,000,000 and putting it into your superannuation fund. Lucky them. They will no doubt have a lovely comfortable retirement.Perhaps I should point out that I have never rented any property out , don’t own any extra houses except a shared family holiday house where I have less than a half share, nor do I intend to just in case someone feels like having a pop. As for tenant security, it is pretty secure over here, we don’t have many what you would call slums.

They are selling here too nanna we sold ours and my sister sold hers this year.
Only small properties but nice and in a very good position for the town.
We bought them as investments and for security because we were living in tied accommodation at the time.
As has been mentioned it was a popular thing to do then but now we are all (those of us in that category anyway) now retiring and want/need the capital.
We did have one or two really good tenants but some were awful and we couldn’t be bothered anymore.

I know that it is just as difficult to find decent affordable rental property in Australia as it is in the UK, nanna8.

Interesting that the trend is for landlords to sell up and invest elsewhere.
Will this mean property prices stagnate or start to drop, I wonder?

The property market seems to be stagnating here unless a property is in exactly the right location and priced reasonably.

As for tenant security, it is pretty secure over here, we don’t have many what you would call slums.
Not "slums" but certainly a lot of mould in some areas after the floods.

My son has been house hunting in Somerset and we have noticed how many on the market are for people selling rental property they own.
A friend who lives in Lincolnshire has just been evicted from her long time rented bungalow (owner says he wants it) and is finding it's not easy to get somewhere else, cost wise and because she has a dog and a cat.

It is not always easy to end rental tenantcies on. DD had an offer accepted on a rental property being sold because with the rise in interest rates and their own mortgage to pay the owners couldn't afford both.

Offer accepted and her house sold. it turned out the tenants, who were still in residence, have a contract with a set end date - early next year - and cannot be forced to leave before then.

Fortunately, it is the house of DD's dreams and she is prepared to wait, and her house is her buyers dreaam home and they are prepared to wait - they too are renting, so lawyers are drawing up agreements so that if DD is prepared to wait nearly a year for a hosue the current wners cannot suddenly pull out and sell it to someone else for more.

Curtaintwitcher

There are plenty of private rentals available where I live. Most are owned by Asians. Trouble is, the rents are high and the landlords are not good at doing repairs.

Evidence? Are “Asians” less likely to repair rental properties than other ethnicities?

There are quite a few vacant properties owned by overseas people here but they tend to be left empty. I think some are there in case things in China get difficult - boltholes. Most of our shopping centres are owned by Chinese investors. That’s just the way it is these days, we accept it.

There is legislation on the horizon which means that LLs will not be able to rent out property with less than a "C" category insulation after 2030. The Tories abandoned this legislation but Labour are pretty keen to re-establish it. Many LLs will sell rather than carry our the required improvements in older properties. In theory this means that cheap(er) properties will come onto the market which are of less interest to developers. An announcement is expected on monday.

We are going the other way. We did 13 years private renting, then 3 years holiday lets but in Oct will be going back to long term tenants.

nanna8

There are quite a few vacant properties owned by overseas people here but they tend to be left empty. I think some are there in case things in China get difficult - boltholes. Most of our shopping centres are owned by Chinese investors. That’s just the way it is these days, we accept it.

We shouldn't though. Allowing foreigners to buy tower blocks of flats, keeping them empty. I would be the first to congratulate Labour, would be hard though, if they banned foreigners from doing this, as they do in other countries I believe. This would be putting British people first.
Too much money to lose I would guess, but it could be stopped
Although Labour are just as globalist as the last lot.

Long term is the way people I know who have rental properties are going

biglouis

There is legislation on the horizon which means that LLs will not be able to rent out property with less than a "C" category insulation after 2030. The Tories abandoned this legislation but Labour are pretty keen to re-establish it. Many LLs will sell rather than carry our the required improvements in older properties. In theory this means that cheap(er) properties will come onto the market which are of less interest to developers. An announcement is expected on monday.

That will probably cause a slump in house prices.

Anywhere around here (outer SW London) rents have soared during the last couple of years. Some of it happened before the rise in interest rates so I don’t believe it’s just that. At least some of it is down to sheer greed - because they can - there’s a general shortage of rental properties, let alone decent, affordable ones.

In an area I watch closely, I know from Land Reg records that a good percentage of rental properties were bought when prices were much lower, by which I mean 50% or even more, so that means even less reason for whacking rents up due to IR rises.

As for blocks of flats bought up by foreigners who don’t live in them or even rent them out (merely use them as a handy place to park their cash) it’s high time action was taken. There are many such in London.

I wish we’d take a leaf out of Denmark’s book and ban foreigners from buying property unless they’ve lived in the country for 5 years.

I say all this as a LL myself, albeit of just one property, where the rent is now considerably lower than the local market rate, and has been for a few years now. To us it’s been well worth it for very good tenants who have wanted to stay.

Although Labour are just as globalist as the last lot....
What do you mean by this Freya5?

nanna8 There are restrictions on ‘ordinary’overseas people buying property in Australia though. I’m not exactly sure of the exact restrictions but if we wanted to buy anything but a new property I don’t think we could.

Here in Boston, nearly every older, terraced house that comes up for sale is bought in order to become a rented property, many become HOMO, like the one next door to me.

callistemon not a slump, but certainly houses at the bottom of the market may drop a bit, which will just make it easier for many first time buyers to get on housing ladder. Most rental properties will have been rental for at least five years so the chances that any buy to let landlords will make a loss is limited.

There are two rental properties on the street where I live, one is fantastic and has been modernised to a high specification and is £1300 per month and the other, well goodness knows how much a month because the landlord does beggar all with it and it is an absolute eyesore, the people renting are a very young couple and I feel so sorry for them, the landlord is taking advantage. Last year, when the previous tenants moved out and the young couple moved in, I went to see the landlord with my next door neighbour and asked him to start renovating the outside of the property as it looked atrocious. He said he would but never did, money for old rope comes to mind. All some landlords want is money each month for doing nothing. I have not seen sight or sound of him since the couple moved in.

Is there someone you can contact to complain about the landlord because I am sure the young couple are afraid to do so in case he kicks them out. They are a lovely couple and the young man is on dialysis and we never see anyone visiting them, they seem to be on their own.