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TODAY'S OTHER NEWS

Buy-to-let landlords continue to enjoy ‘stable returns’

Rents across England and Wales have edged slightly higher over the past 12 months, increasing by an average of 0.5% to hit £861 per calendar month (pcm) in March, the latest data from Your Move shows.

The West Midlands overtook the South West as the fastest growing area this month, the data found. The typical rent in the region increased by 4% in the year to April, reaching an average of £641pcm. This was ahead of the South West, which had growth of 3.7% in the same period to hit £701pcm.

Other areas to post strong growth include Yorkshire and the Humber, where prices grew by 2.5% to hit £589pcm, the North West where rents are up 2.3% to £648pcm, as well as the East Midlands where rents have increased by 2.2% over the past 12 months to hit £666pcm.

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At the other end of the scale, prices declined in two regions, with rents in London dropping by 1.1%, while the East of England has seen rents decline by 2.2% in the last year, now standing at £874pcm.

London remains the most expensive region to rent property in the UK, with the typical property let for £1,262pcm.

The North East remains the cheapest place to rent, with an average monthly charge of £538pcm.

Once again northern regions offered the highest percentage yields, led by properties in the North East which typically returned 5% to investors, while that figure was 4.8% in the North West.

This contrasts with an average yield of 3.2% in London and 3.3% in both the South East and South West.

The average yield across all of England and Wales was 4.3%, the same as March’s figure but slightly down compared to the 4.4% recorded a year ago.

The data also shows that tenant finances remain relatively healthy, with the proportion of tenants struggling with their finances stood at 9.1% in April, down from 9.4% in March and February, Your Move found.

Martyn Alderton, national lettings director at Your Move, commented: “Across England and Wales there are those areas which are seeing rents rise, and those where they are flat or falling.

“It is the areas which have seen periods of strong growth in recent years, such as London and the East of England, which have dropped back slightly.

“Other areas of the country, including the West Midlands, are starting to catch up and are growing at an attractive rate.

“Regardless of the short-term rent fluctuations the property market remains a great place to invest, with landlords also enjoying stable returns compared to last month.”

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  •  G romit

    The article is fine for unencumbered Landlords, but the situation for a Landlord with a BTL mortgage can be very, very different. A 4% gross return, with even a positive net profit, could be a loss after tax.

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    Spot on there G romit.
    Where I am based, if I had a loan, then I would definitely be losing money.
    The average rents quoted here are just that, an average.
    A two bed upstairs flat, would rent down here anything from £460 per month.
    Property prices in our region have shot up lately and in some areas over 30%. However, the rents haven't moved much in twenty years, so therefore a BTL, based on today's prices, would give you an extremely low return on your money, if anything.

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    John. If the Welsh Government follow the SNP lunatic letting legislation, you can look forward to rents trebling over the following 5 years, as I have found after 15 years of rental stagnation, although reasonable capital growth occurred then which has now stalled.

     
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    • 22 May 2019 14:34 PM

    Yep it seems that those who comment in the general media have no appreciation that rent is a minor detail.
    It is the profit after all taxes have been paid that is the pertinent figure.
    There will be many LL that even after receiving the rent possible will be operating at a loss due to the bonkers S24 turnover tax.
    Rental levels are no indication of viability.
    Something that many tenants will only too soon become aware of as their sole trader LL are forced to sell up because of S24.

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