More than half of buy-to-let landlord would consider investing in houses in multiple occupation (HMOs) if it helped to protect their profits ahead of forthcoming government tax relief changes for buy-to-let homes, according to Kensington.  

The specialist mortgage lender has launched a range of HMO and multi-unit building products through its specialist distributor channel with a view to catering for what it says is growing demand among those looking to invest in HMOs.

“Earlier this year, Kensington carried out research amongst 200 landlords and found that 55% would give more consideration to investing in HMOs as a result of buy-to-let tax changes,” said Steve Griffiths, director of sales and distribution at the Northview Group, formerly the Kensington Group.

Kensington’s HMO range caters for properties with up to six bedrooms and freehold properties with up to four multiple leases. Rates start at 3.39% for a two-year fixed rate and 3.69% for a three-year fixed rate at 65% loan-to-value (LTV) with a 1.5% completion fee.

There is no minimum income requirement and the products are available to existing buy-to-let landlords. Minimum property values start at £75,000 for HMOs and £200,000 for multi-unit buildings.

Griffiths added: “We believe that demand for specialist products which require a more individual approach will grow as investors look for ways to derive greater value from their investment.

“Our new range is built to meet this demand and we look forward to working with our specialist distribution partners to make more complex buy-to-let products accessible to brokers, whilst also ensuring that we offer the best possible value to the market as a whole.”

Kensington has also reduced buy-to-let rates by up to 0.5%, with its 2-year fixes now start from 2.79% and 3-year fixes from 3.09% with a completion fee of 1.5%.