Landlords: Would you start in BTL in 2025 if given the choice?

No, unless you’re a cash buyer but even then it’s an investment fraught with pitfalls. All the previous comments have covered most of my disillusionment with the current system.
I started out 35 years ago in order to provide another source of pension which would have been passed down to children/grandchildren. First one was tough going as I had to dip into my pocket every month but over the years I manage to amass over 50 flats through loans and never taking a penny out in costs and over-paying loans wherever possible. However, due to the demonising of landlords by action groups and out of touch politicians I am exiting, currently down to my last 11 so as the tenants vacate they will also come off the rental market. Desperate shortage of quality rental property where I am and rents are going up but too much slanted regulation. Rent tribunals are just so biased against the landlords and have the view the tenant is innocent and the landlord is guilty until proved otherwise. I don’t regret going into BTL back in 1990 but would not start out in 2025.

No chance.

Like many here I started in the mid 90s. I got up to 12 London houses but am now down to 7, mortgage free, and slowly selling.

I recently had a miserable court experience where I waited 15 months for a s21 hearing to rid myself of non paying house trashers, I won but it was terrifying because neither the judge nor their solicitor actually knew the law and if I hadn’t really done my homework I could have lost.

This experience affected me and this was pre Labour and RRB. Now, whenever I think of reletting a placewhen it becomes empty my mind goes to a very dark negative place, only seeing the potential for problems, and I can’t do it, so I sell. Stupid country.

In reply to James ,
Yes a few years ago it was a different risk /reward situation .
Now the risk is very high , The Government is encouraging Tenants to go thousands in arrears before action can be taken . Then you have to go through the court system , where the rent dodging house bashing tenant will receive unlimited support from the Government and the Council. To keep the tenant in the property.

As a footnote, when sdlt was raised to 5% the budget notes said it was to discourage second home owners and landlords. They won’t rest till we’re gone and landlords are big corporates. Still don’t understand why this will help, but that’s the way it is.

If they want to kill the PRS, drop cgt to a level where me and many others will gladly exit. There’ll be very few landlords left. And as a bonus for the government, house prices will fall…at least short term.

They will get jobs, directiorships party funding from the corporate landlords

Reply to the comment left by Tom C at 17/01/2025 – 21:04
Not many people would ignore 2 x £20,000 SDLT and the risk of house prices falling.

I’ve been renting out property since 1992, but never built up beyond 5 properties as I needed capital for my new interest in property development. In retrospect I should have focused on being a LL, ridden the boom in house price inflation, and derisked my portfolio by selling my weaker properties and reducing overall mortgage debt to 20-30%.

Too late now, and with a single HMO left the risk of being in BTL has become far too high and the returns net of income tax and CGT too poor. I would absolutely not enter BTL now – SIPPs and ISAs are much simpler and a much better bet via compound interest. I would only buy property and rent it as a holding operation if it had existing planning permission or I had enough cash to accumulate a larger land parcel with very high chances of success for redevelopment. The hassle of dealing with tenants, councils and legislative requirements, the onerous taxation, and the simply disgusting attitudes of the likes of Shelter have finally destroyed my confidence in lettings as a business and in civil servants and all forms of government in this area. Their ignorance of business and their cavalier attitudes towards landlords and property rights is completely alienating, so I say stuff the lot of them.

I’ve been renting out property since 1992, but never built up beyond 5 properties as I needed capital for my new interest in property development. In retrospect I should have focused on being a LL, ridden the boom in house price inflation, and derisked my portfolio by selling my weaker properties and reducing overall mortgage debt to 20-30%.

Too late now, and with a single HMO left the risk of being in BTL has become far too high and the returns net of income tax and CGT too poor. I would absolutely not enter BTL now – SIPPs and ISAs are much simpler and a much better bet via compound interest. I would only buy property and rent it as a holding operation if it had existing planning permission or I had enough cash to accumulate a larger land parcel with very high chances of success for redevelopment. The hassle of dealing with tenants, councils and legislative requirements, the onerous taxation, and the simply disgusting attitudes of the likes of Shelter have finally destroyed my confidence in lettings as a business and in civil servants and all forms of government in this area. Their ignorance of business and their cavalier attitudes towards landlords and property rights is completely alienating, so I say stuff the lot of them.

Reply to the comment left by Tom C at 17/01/2025 – 21:04
Well what about the tax you’ll pay, the building insurance, the rental insurance, the maintenance costs, the letting fees, the tennants that stop paying rent and can’t be evicted for years and trash the place into the bargin, the fines from the courts for making a slight admin error, the section 24 tax, the EPC upgrade costs, the damp repair costs due to the tennant drying their wet clothes on the radiators, the return of years of rent to the tennant, because you made a slight mistake in your letting process, the redecorating costs after your last tennant painted the walls and upvc windows black, because he was depressed, the broken front door replacement after the police raided the property, and the genral costs in running a business/investment in property, etc. Etc. Etc?
You’ll be left these days with not £37k in profit! It would be more like £5k to £10k if you were very very lucky, and didn’t have any tennants causing you problems. Some years you would not even break even. Not bad if you are very very stupid, and want to work for free, and become bankrupted! This govenment and the last have broken the PRS, and you would be mad to invest in the PRS these days!

I’m an accidental landlord as I had to move out from my home. Later on bought another BTL as my job was not in single place to compensate my rent payment on another place. Now I’m settling down and wanted to buy house for my own. Since I haven’t stayed in my only home for past 3 years I failed occupation test and will need to sell both of my BTL houses to avoid 5% extra stamp duty which I have to pay approx 30k for my new house on top of 15k. Due to mortgage rate and stamp duty no one is willing to invest on BTL irrespective of other legislation. With tenants properly going 15 k less than normal. If I’m not tenanting I have to pay 1150 per month just to keep the property. Yes 700 mortgage (150k x 5%/12)+ 250 service charge for flat+ 200 cc tax(). The rent is 1400, if I rent out. So the gain is 450 if rented. If not loss is 1150 per month. If I sell, I will loose 15 k less than market price. Basically I’m stuck. Im loosing 30k irrespective of what option I choose. I’m endup keeping believing someday it will be normal.Just to recover this 30k which I lost it will take 5 years with both of my btl houses with 130k deposits.