The Question
I purchased my first buy-to-let two years ago and thanks to rising house prices I have just discovered – whilst remortgaging – that my equity stake has risen significantly. I am now truly bitten by the bug and want to purchase another property.
In your opinion, how long should a new-ish landlord wait to expand their portfolio? Should I wait for the next remortgage (two years’ time) or go for it now?
I would be using income from the current buy-to-let to make the new purchase so waiting two years would mean I could remortgage and release more cash to get a lower loan-to-value (LTV) – but does this work in reality?
Jeni’s Answer
Stories like this make me so happy! Well done!
There is no ‘right’ answer to your question. House prices will probably rise over the next two years, as will rent. Currently, interest rates are very low, so now does present an excellent time to invest.
However, if now isn’t quite right for you, there’s no harm in waiting. My personal opinion is that the sooner you buy, the longer the period you have to experience capital and rental growth, which, as you’ve already seen, can be incredibly rewarding!
You can read more of Jeni’s advice on buy-to-let mortgages here. If you are interested in a residential mortgage, Jeni also writes a Q&A column on this area of the mortgage market, here.
If you have a question you would like to ask Jeni email kate.saines@emap.com
Jeni Browne is business development director at Mortgages for Business
