Rob Cranston

Hey Guys, Been a while since I've been round here so do excuse me if this question has been asked in the past. Quick one for any lease experts. I've got a leasehold property nearing 83 years. I'm being quoted £965+VAT for a valuation to advise the cost of renewing the lease, this doesn't include the legal costs which are being estimated £775+VAT. Can anyone tell me, is this normal? Seem expensive for a valuation to me but I have never done a lease renewal before so wouldn't know. Also, with leasehold reform etc, is anyone holding off to see if costs come down or if the GOV brings anything in on the renewal of existing leases? I don't mind holding off a little bit longer but am conscious that the cost will be increasing each year the lease decreases until it gets to 80 and gets ridiculous. Look forward to hearing peoples thoughts. Rob

Hey Guys, Its been a while since I posted on here, so I hope everyone is safe and well? Bit of a different one from me here. My wife & I have been looking to sell up our primary residence this year and whilst getting the house ready and reading through the past Devassess Report it seems that there's 3 potential development sites within 75m of our property: 1) Site 1: This has already been developed: https://www.zoopla.co.uk/for-sale/details/56775025?search_identifier=919d005d889d0d96f2083af2e0d4d9e5 2) Site 2: This sits on the rear of our garden and shares the site equally with 3 other properties (25% each) 3) Site 3: This sits across the road with minimal impact. We're trying to figure out what our options are & whether this is a potential hazard for someone looking to buy or whether it is a unique opportunity for us to try acquire the land & develop. All three other properties for site 2 are in a dire state and are let out to students. I'm fairly confident if I could get hold of the owner for each property we would be able to acquire this at a reasonable rate. Does anyone have any experience with doing something like this, or have any recommendations on how to structure or value what you are going to offer? I have a fairly good knowledge of BTL but not a great deal in something like this. Do I need to disclose why I want to buy the land? Could I acquire the land then sell our property & still develop? Is it a waste of time if I don't want to live there? Any advise or help appreciated :-) Rob

Hey Derek, This is exactly what I need!! Could you drop me an email at robcranston@hotmail.co.uk with details on how to access, I presume its read only as you charge for it?

Please please please anyone??

Hey Guys, Been a while since i posted on here, I hope your all well? I'm being a bit lazy here but thought id give it ago before a spend all night drawing one up. Has anyone got a suitable spreadsheet for calculating BRR's with ROI before & after etc? My standard BTL one just isn't cutting the mustard. I'm sure I could probably find one on here somewhere but I'm on a bit of a tight schedule & don't really have the time to look. Appreciate the help guys. Rob

Hey Guys, Does anyone know where to find the BTL property calculator which was attached to the course 'running the numbers' a couple of years ago? I cant seem to find it since the site update. Thanks in advance

Very lazy I know, but has anyone got a spread sheet which lists everything related to building a property from the ground up. ie, connections, footings, brickwork, windows etc Thanks in advance.

Hi Neil, I think you may be able to assist me, I'm going to drop you an email now. Rob

Hi Michael, Thanks for your reply. To be honest I haven't actually done that much research into that area. I've mainly been focusing on Salford quays and Eccles due to the yields. Just had a quick look at where you mean on the map and it does seem very central. Are you based round that area or investing from a far? Rob

Has anyone got any experience or opinions on this area, seems like reasonable yeilds can be achieved. Be interested to hear from investors in the Salford Quays area.

See your point Stuart. He hasn't replied to my last few questions via email so may be time to find someone new, shame as we've been working together for the last 8 years or so. Any broker recommendations?

Amazing, thanks Stuart. Yep we own our house together so hopefully this shouldn't be a problem. I'll get in touch with my broker and see what he thinks (although i think he may be ignoring me with the amount of questions i've asked him recently ) I'll let you know how i get on.

Hi Stuart, Solid advise as always, many thanks for that. I guess the priorities are really for her to receive a descent income. I'm in a position where I am earning just under 45k through work plus around 30k of rental income, and have a 50k in savings which i would like to invest somewhere but am in between a rock and a hard place with tax My partner earns very little through self employed income and spends most her time looking after our two children. I've explored the avenues of holding properties in a LTD company but for me at present this does not seem like the right move. What I'm really looking to do is get her a BTL so she can earn some income, as for proportion and being on the deeds i'm not fussed. Any ideas appreciated. Rob

Hi Guys, I don't suppose anyone knows if this is possible? Ideally I would like to put the deposit down & take on the mortgage but put the property and rent received in her name. She currently has an income of under £15,000 and we are not married. Any advise appreciated. Many Thanks, Rob

Thanks Mike, I guess they don't like the thought of renting to the Housing Associations then.

Thanks Thandi, to be honest I haven't really been told a lot, i do my current LTD company accounts myself so do not have an accountant to advise at present. I'm just trying to gather all the information to get this set up correctly the first time round. Anybody know if there's any additional fees that need to be accounted for when buying through a LTD company?

Thanks Mike, is there also an SIC code for flipping? Or will the lender only allow the above codes meaning a separate business will be required for flips? Thanks Rob

Hi Guys, I've recently established that my future investments would be better made via a limited company. I have previously set up a limited company, non property related, so have a small amount of experience in setting up and running. I've got a few questions regarding, setting up, LTD mortgages and the correct SIC codes to use so hoping some of you may be able to help. Firstly, I've read a lot about setting up an SPV, which from my understanding is a separate entity from a current LTD company but under the same umbrella. My current LTD company is fairly small and only has a net profit of about 20k. Can anyone shed any light on whether it would be best to set up an SPV or a completely new LTD company? Secondly, from a lenders point of view, do they have a preferred way for this to be done? I’ve read a lot online that says they prefer it to be a new business with no income and use the directors earnings as a means of passing affordability. Can anyone shed some light? Lastly, the business will ideally start with a couple of BTL's then look at doing flips and refurbs in the future. As there will be two cor functions, BTL's & Flips, will there need to be two businesses or 1 business with two SIC codes? I've also scoured the SIC code list to try find the codes related to flipping and BTL's, can anyone advise what these are? Any help, advise, or pointers to information on this would be amazing :-) Rob

Thanks for the advise ChallisJ. I guess i should start looking at Limited company options. Rob

Hi Guys, Hoping someone can help as I'm a little confused with my tax position. My account has just recently done my tax return for 2016-17 which looked something like this. Pay from employments £31,493 -Plus benefits received £1,554 Profit from UK land and property £9,863 Total income received £42,910 minus Personal Allowance £11,000 Total income on which tax is due £31,910 Now my accountant seems to think I can potentially earn another £13,090 of profit from property before I come in to difficulty with the interest relief changes. Can anyone confirm if this is correct or is it a case of I only have another £2,090 until i hit these changes. Just trying to plan my investments for this year and figure out if i should be using a LTD company or not. Any help appreciated, Rob

Anyone?

Hi Guys, I'm currently going through an application for finance in a non property related LTD company which I am shareholder of. They have asked me to be a personal guarantor on this. The amount is 50k. My residential mortgage is up for renewal next year and I could do with releasing as much equity as possible. Does anyone know if being a guarantor against this finance is going to go against me when applying for a new deal? Any help or advise appreciated. Rob

Thanks for the reply Stuart, guess ill count myself lucky then.

Hey Guys, I'm hoping someone can help I'm nearing the end of a 2 year fixed BTL mortgage on a property I own in SW London. Please see values below. Value £285,000 Rent £900pcm SC & GR £131pcm Current mortgage £114,629 My broker has sent various deals through releasing small amounts of equity. The best one being below: Lender: Accord Term: 5 Years Rate: 2.19% Fees: £1,995 Loan: £160,000 When you do the maths this releases £45,371 worth of equity but leaves up to £125,000 left in the property. Now I know this is not the greatest investment when you weigh up the value and rent, but it has done me well on CG over the last 5 years. I would still like to make a return of say £350-£400 a month, which the mortgage offered will give, I just feel gutted that i'm potentially locking away alot more which i wont have access to for 5 years. My broker says the reason behind this is not because of the LTV but because of the stress testing on the rent. According to him there is other options available with a higher rate and lower stress testings but none with a rate at around 2.19% I guess what im looking for is a lender that will lend around the £180,000 mark with a rate of up to 2.2% or better. If anyone has any advice or knows of any products it would be much appreciated Many Thanks, Rob

Thanks for the reply Stuart, solid advice as always