How our London Buy to Let Conveyancing Solicitors can help you Secure your Buy to Let Property
Are you considering purchasing a property to rent, or considering renting out your current home? If so, you may need a buy to let mortgage in order to let your property without breaking your mortgage conditions. Our London buy to let conveyancing solicitors can help you arrange the perfect mortgage for your property.
How is a buy to let mortgage different from a standard residential mortgage?
Buy to let mortgages allow you to rent our your property to tenants on an assured shorthold tenancy. In most cases, you won’t be allowed to live in the property with your tenant yourself. Although buy to let mortgages tend to be more expensive than residential mortgage on average, many of them are interest-only, meaning you only pay interest on your loan until your mortgage completes. There are also repayment options available from many lenders if you prefer.
Do I need to own a residential property in order to get a buy to let?
Many lenders do not require you to own your home in order to get a buy to let mortgage, although some do. Howeverm if you do not own a residential property, the way your eligibility is calculated may differ. Most lenders decide whether or not to grant a buy to let mortgage depending on how much rental income your property is likely to earn – ergo, whether your property is a good investment for them. But if you do not own a residential property, your lender may also take your affordability into account when deciding whether you are eligible.
What is the market like for rental property in London?
Although London is popular with professionals, house prices are the highest in London compared to the rest of England and Wales and have continued to steadily increase. For this reason, many individuals hoping to move to London are looking for rental properties, as they tend to be more affordable and offer a good short-term solution if they don’t intend to settle in London permanently. For this reason, there is a high demand for affordable housing in London. Owning a buy-to-let in the right area could therefore be an incredibly rewarding investment.
What will I need a buy to let conveyancing solicitor for?
A conveyancing solicitor will normally be required for the purchase and sale of any property, including a buy to let. They may also be needed to arrange the mortgage on the property; if your buy to let conveyancing solicitor is on the lender panel for your chosen lender, they can act on both yours and the lender’s behalf, which can save you valuable time. We are on the conveyancing lender panels for the majority of high-street lenders, including Barclays, Birmingham Midshires, HSBC, NatWest, The Mortgage Works and Santander. You can get an instant online breakdown of all of our fees including land registry fees and stamp duty land tax.
Calcuate your buy to let conveyancing costs using our conveyancing fees calculator.
Managing your London buy to let property
By owning a buy to let property, you become a landlord complete with all the responsibilities a landlord has. Some of these responsibilities include:
- Ensuring any gas or electrical appliances are installed safely and maintained
- Ensuring there is a functional hot water and heating supply to the property
- Repairing damaged exterior parts of your property including guttering, drains and windows
- Making sure there is at least one fire alarm per storey and (in commercial properties) fire extinguishers
- Keeping properties safe from health hazards
- Providing an Energy Performance Certificate
- Checking that your tenant legally has the right to rent your property
- Protecting your tenant’s deposit using a government approved scheme
- Providing your Tenant with the “How to Rent” checklist
- Paying the income tax on your rental income
- Paying for repairs to these parts of the property
- Managing the upkeep of communal areas in multiple occupancy properties
You can find out more about the responsibilities of a landlord in our blog on the subject. You could hire a letting agent to handle day-to-day maintenance on your behalf, though this can be expensive and you will still need to ensure they are fulfilling their role. Read more about this in our case study in which a landlord faced criminal charges due to the negligence of his letting agent.
Are there any specific mortgage conditions that apply to a buy to let property?
Your lender may have some conditions in place, such as:*
- You may have to take out specific buy-to-let buildings insurance on the buy-to-let property
- You may be prohibited from living in the property yourself or letting the property out to a family member or romantic partner.
- Your lender may prohibit sub-letting by any tenants you have
- There may be restrictions on what kinds of tenancy you can or cannot offer (such as assured shorthold)
- You will likely be obligated to maintain the property to an acceptable standard, and the lender may require permission to inspect the property at any time (with notice).
*Please note that the precise requirements will depend on your lender.
Can a first-time buyer get a buy to let property?
Potentially, though this will depend on your lender’s requirements. Lenders typically decide whether or not to grant a buy-to-let mortgage based on how much rental income the property is likely to make; as a first-time buyer, you have less experience in managing property and mortgages and are therefore riskier to grant a mortgage to.
Can I use a gifted deposit to purchase a buy to let property?
Again, it will depend on your lender’s requirements. At the time of writing, many high-street lenders, including Barclays and NatWest, do accept gifted deposits for buy-to-let properties; some, such as Santander, may require an explanation of the circumstances; other lenders may not.
Who are the major lenders for Buy to Let mortgages?
Some of the major buy-to-let lenders include
- Birmingham Midshires
- The Mortgage works
- Barclays
- Virgin Money
- Godiva
- NatWest
If you are looking to purchase as a Limited company, the following lenders specialise in such buy to let mortgages for you:
- Aldermore
- Paragon Bank PLC
- Precise Mortgages
- State bank of India
- Foundation Home Loans
- Kent reliance
- The Mortgage lender
You can find out more about purchasing a buy-to-let property as a limited company in our blogs on conveyancing with limited company purchase and purchasing property using a special purpose vehicle. This is not an exhaustive list and other lenders may offer buy-to-let mortgages which are better suited to your requirements. To discover the best buy-to-let deal for you, book an appointment with Starck Uberoi Wealth’s mortgages team by calling 020 8037 4027 or emailing info@suwealth.co.uk.
Can I get consent to let from my lender rather than a buy to let mortgage?
You could ask your lender for consent to let, which will allow you to rent out your home while keeping your residential mortgage. Lenders that do give consent to let tend to do so on a short-term basis, usually up to a maximum of twelve months. Therefore, if you want to rent a property on a more long-term basis, a buy to let mortgage may be a better option. Speak to Starck Uberoi Wealth to find out which lenders may offer this as an option.
Can I get a buy to let mortgage on my current home and buy a new residential property?
Some lenders offer let to buy mortgages, with which you can remortgage your current home onto a buy to let mortgage and obtain a residential mortgage on the new property you wish to purchase. This can be a great option if you want to wait before selling your current property or want to move house while still keeping ownership of your current home. To be eligible for a let to buy mortgage, you will not only need to pass regular affordability checks but your property must also be likely to make enough rental income. For example, many lenders require a property to be able to earn around 145% of the regular repayments in mortgage income before they will approve a let to buy mortgage. Starck Uberoi Wealth can help you find a lender offering let to buy mortgages with excellent rates.
I want to split my property into flats and rent them out. Will I need a buy to let mortgage?
Renting out any part of your property without your lender’s permission will likely be a violation of your mortgage conditions which could lead to your home being repossessed. Additionally, if you want to split your property there will be a number of conveyancing matters that will need to be completed. Read our blog on Splitting Property into Flats to find out more.
Why should I instruct Starck Uberoi Solicitors to handle by London buy to let conveyancing matter?
Fast buy to let conveyancing services
Some of the biggest delays in conveyancing are caused by conveyancers still relying on slow postal services and face-to-face appointments with their clients. Our London Conveyancing Solicitors avoid these delays by sending and receiving documents via email and by using email and telephone only to communicate with our clients. Upon instruction, you will be assigned a specific solicitor who will manage your case from start to finish. Should they be out of the office for any reason, another dedicated conveyancing solicitor will be able to quickly pick up from where they left off to ensure you meet every deadline.
Online buy to let conveyancing services
We already conduct a large part of our business through email, but that is not all we do. Thanks to our software, you can complete even more of your conveyancing process without needing to leave the house. We can perform online ID checks and document authentication using our online software to save you having to come to our office. With just a few clicks, you can receive an instant online buy to let conveyancing quote using the online quote generator on our website, which also contains information on land registry fees and stamp duty payable. Additionally, you can use the live chat function on our website to get in touch with us. Our live chat is monitored by a real person who can quickly answer any questions you may have about the services we offer.
Versatile Solicitors
We understand that many of our clients are not comfortable with the entire process being completed online. That is why we still offer in-person appointments at all of our offices. Our offices are situated with accessibility in mind, all within a short walk from local train stations. Many of our London offices are also easy to reach by bus and have parking only a short distance away.
The Starck Uberoi App
With the Starck Uberoi app, we cut out the inconvenience and the anxiety caused by having to manage your matter on a desktop. The Starck Uberoi app allows clients to contact their allocated conveyancing solicitor on the go via the in-app messaging service and receive real-time updates when each stage of their conveyancing process is complete. You can also use the app to safely send and receive documents, view contact details of everyone involved in the process and see a full breakdown of your fees. Install our app from the App store Install our app from the Google Play store
Quality Services.
Our London conveyancing department has been awarded with law society accreditation under the Conveyancing Quality Scheme on account of our consistent, high-quality services. “Communication was flawless, and when facing points which required special attention, everything was fixed and dealt with promptly.” “Professional, reliable, efficient and very knowledgable team. Excellent service and great team!” – Taken from our reviews on Google.
Property Law Expertise
Not only can we help with conveyancing matters; our solicitors can assist with a huge range of property-related issues, including:
- Landlord and Tenant matters – evictions, service charge disputes
- Boundary disputes
- Lease Extension
- Property Litigation
- Claiming beneficial interest in property
Starck Uberoi Wealth
Our sister company Starck Uberoi Wealth can find the perfect buy to let mortgage for you using their expert knowledge of the whole mortgage market. They can offer unbiased independent mortgage advice based on your needs, future ambitions and circumstances, with a focus on long-term benefit. We offer a 10% discount on our conveyancing fees for clients of Starck Uberoi Wealth.
How Starck Uberoi Solicitors can help
For an appointment with our London Conveyancing team, please call 020 8840 6640 or email solicitor@starckuberoi.co.uk. Our offices are located in Brentford, Ealing, London Belgravia and Canterbury, all within easy access by public transport. Our managing partner, Raminder Uberoi, can also provide a Notary Public Service at any of our offices. Read More:
