Neath landlords are becoming progressively more self-assured
about expanding their rental portfolios; as Neath rents rise, mortgage interest
rates fall and demand for decent Neath rental properties outstrips supply.
A number of reports nationally would suggest around a third
of UK ‘portfolio’ landlords (i.e. landlords with more than one rental
property) are actively looking to expand their rental portfolios in the
next 12 to 18 months, that would locally mean…
315 Neath ‘portfolio’ landlords are looking to add to their rental portfolio by the end of 2022.
The pandemic has had a substantial change to what we want
from a home. Many people think that relates just to homeowners, yet nothing
could be further from the truth as it also applies to tenants.
Homeowner or tenant, many of us have spent a lot of time away
from places of work. Many office workers face the outlook of the combination of
working from home as well as at the office, meaning a change in what people
look for in their home. People (including tenants) are looking for larger
properties, with extra rooms for office space and decent sized gardens or to be
closer to outside green space.
So, let’s look at the ‘scores on the doors’ as to why Neath
landlords are on the up…
Neath house prices are 33.3% higher than 5 years ago.
Because some Neath first-time
buyers are being priced out of the market due to these house price rises, they
are being forced back into the rental market. Add the extra demand of the 1 in
10 Neath house sellers, who in the last 12 months have had to go into rented
accommodation instead of buying, and this has created increased demand.
Meaning…
Rents today in Neath are 12.9% higher than a year
ago and 21.6% higher than 5 years ago.
The average rent of a Neath property today is £584 pcm.
In previous articles on the Neath property market, I was
talking about the lack of properties to buy – yet that issue is also there in
the British rental property market. Now let’s look at the supply of rental
properties.
Would it surprise you that the number of private
rented homes in the UK has fallen in the last 12 months by just over 2.5%?
Why? One reason has been many ‘accidental’ landlords have
used this housing market to sell their property for a good price. That means
the supply of available rental properties has decreased. The perfect storm of
increased demand and lower supply, and with many Neath tenants competing for those
larger Neath homes, they may find Neath rental prices pick up even more over
the next year.
What about buy-to-let mortgages for Neath landlords?
The banks all but withdrew from buy-to-let lending in the
first lockdown. Yet, since last summer, things have settled down and during
2021 there has been a mortgage price war.
Neath landlords can borrow 60% of the value of their BTL
property on a two-year fixed rate of 1.18% from Platform and even those with a
20% deposit (that’s borrowing 80%) can borrow that money at 2.49% 2-year fixed
rate from The Mortgage Works. Those looking to fix for a little longer can get
1.44% from The Mortgage Works and 1.79% at 75% loan to value from Santander.
(It must be noted there are some fees to these mortgages,
and you must take advice from a qualified mortgage advisor before deciding
which mortgage is best for you).
So, is now the best time to invest in Neath buy-to-let
property?
If you are attracted to invest in Neath buy-to-let, it’s
vital to do your homework first – particularly if you are new to the game.
When estimating the expected rental returns on investment,
capital growth and yields, many Neath landlords look to what has happened with house
prices and rental prices, yet past performance does not always deliver a future
guaranteed return.
Smart Neath landlords will speak with agents like myself and
others in Neath, prudently researching the Neath property market to discover what
types of properties are in high demand (and short supply) from tenants.
