Like many landlords at the moment, you might be concerned about how to manage your finances while we’re in lockdown due to Coronavirus. Many businesses have closed, many people have been laid off and many of your tenants may not be able to pay their rent. The government has put a 3-month delay on evictions which means that, for the moment, your hands are tied.  Tenants have been made aware that they needn’t pay rent for the next three months and also that landlords have a ‘mortgage holiday.’ (I’ll talk more about that fantasyland in another post.) So as a landlord, you have a mortgage to ..read more

RULE 1 Just do it. You will never be ready, the longer you delay the harder it will become to start being an HMO landlord. You will also be held back by the good deals you have missed and hope a similar deal will come along, they rarely do. Accept that much in this business is an act of faith. The following questions are unanswerable you just have to try it: Will you get tenants? Will you get finance? Will property prices increase? Where will interest rates go to? etc etc. RULE 2 An HMO to be viable needs to have at least five tenants. Though there are exceptions to this Rule. The rul ..read more

Calls for councillors to inspect the licensing of houses in multiple occupation (HMOs) across Wrexham have been made. A topic request form has been submitted for consideration by members of the homes and environment scrutiny committee. It states that: “For some time members have expressed concern over the quality, appropriateness and size of accommodation which is offered to individuals residing in houses in multiple occupation (HMOs) and which is controlled by the licensing regime rather than through the planning process.” The concerns over the accommodation size and amenity space prov ..read more

In this article, we have named the biggest mistakes that HMO property developers can make. If you are a newbie, be very aware of these; and even if you are a seasoned investor, it doesn’t hurt to make sure you still know what not to do.  We don’t often like to post anything negative or problematic for property developers, however, we know it can be very stressful to enter into property development, and we know these mistakes are much easier to avoid when we make you aware of them!  1. Not understanding the risk involved with property rental markets.  There are always risks in HMO prop ..read more

Student HMOs are a wise investment decision for many landlords. While there are some disadvantages of letting to students, there are also significant gains. In this article, we cover everything you need to know before investing in student HMOs: Why Let to Students? Students represent a large number of residents in the private rental sector. The Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) reported there were 2.34 million students in 2017/18. This includes graduate and post-graduate students, overseas students, and also part-time students. A significant number of these students are rentin ..read more

Low house prices and high demand for good quality accommodation makes Sheffield a highly attractive city for property investors. The University of Sheffield, Sheffield Hallam University, Royal Hallamshire & Northern General Hospitals attract young people from different parts of the UK and all over the world who come to Sheffield to study and start their life careers.   It is assumed that there are currently in excess of 50,000 students studying in Sheffield, many of whom live in non-university owned accommodation. This makes pressure on private housing raising concerns relating to th ..read more

We have noticed an increase in HMO property investment. Who wouldn’t want to invest in HMOs as they generate a lot more income than regular buy-to-let. What is an HMO? The cost of setting up an HMO often can be a lot higher than a traditional buy-to-let. And the main reason for that is the initial conversion cost. HMOs are all different, but in order to stand out from the competition and charge higher rent, many landlords choose to offer en-suite rooms. Moreover, many residents want their own bathroom at least. This involves some additional costs. Another cost stands for ..read more

More property investors are turning into HMOs (Houses of Multiple Occupancy). For landlords, gross yields are higher than a standard buy-to-let property and, while they demand a level of expertise in terms of managing occupants, the buildings and the abundance of legal obligations, the financial yields add up. The statistics show that since Q2 of 2018, the gross yield of an HMO has increased from 8.6% to 9.6% in Q2 of 2019, whereas a standard buy-to-let has increased by 0.3%. As the population of the UK growing, there is a big demand there. The Office for National Statistics reported that E ..read more

You as an HMO landlord may be feeling overwhelmed by the variety of rule changes being introduced in 2020. From tax relief to energy efficiency we will help you to recognise everything you need. With more new tax relief rules, updated legislation on energy efficiency standards and a raft of additional fiscal and regulatory policy changes came into force in 2020 it’s important landlords start the new decade with a full understanding of what’s changing. Proactive HMO landlords able to stay a step ahead of key industry milestones will meet the challenges, that lie ahead this year, in an ea ..read more

A former Chatteris bank that has been sold for £100,000 – could become a 7-bedroom house in multiple occupation (HMO). Fenland District Council received an application from Nicholas Leeding of Wimblington for permission to convert the building and to make some changes to the layout. The application has received a nod of approval from the council’s environmental health team who say it is unlikely to have a detrimental effect on air quality or cause any noise. The applicant says that the old mid-19th-century building will need a few changes to the historical features. FIND HMO ..read more