The joy of being a landlord

[FoxEye]

Rents are never going to come down while market conditions continue to support rising prices.

Decades of a lack of supply is going to do that. Prices are only going to reduce if supply starts to outpace demand. Demand for housing isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.

Increasing demand is not helped by the fact that we're losing family homes to 2nd homes and holiday lets at a significant rate.

According to the stats, we're losing 29 homes every single day due to this. ~11k homes per year. Since we're building <200k, that's significant.

 

[dowie]

And again, nobody questions that you "worked hard" yourself, and nobody questions your right to buy nice things for yourself, like a 7-bedroom mansion or a Ferrari or whatever you want. Most of the time, you spending your hard-earned does not deprive anyone else of something. The low-paid worker isn't on the list for that Ferarri, nor is he eyeing up the 7-bedroom mansion.

So if a rich person buys an old building and restores it into a mansion then that's fine in your eyes... but if they took that same building and converted it into say 4 flats and rented out 3 of them they'd be depriving people of something somehow?

Or apparently, "enslaving" them?

Now think more broadly, you do realise that for every mansion that exists, there could be several dwellings built on the same site? But you're fine with mansions, you've got some irrational issues when it comes to someone owning more than one "home" of any size... even though in the real world, where most people aren't middle-aged guys still living with their parents, a private rental market is pretty essential.

And building more properties for sale on the so-called "open market" is not the cure

This literally is the cure though, that's the fundamental problem with the UK housing market right there, not enough supply. This sort of naive view that everything is the fault of landlords etc.. is just not based in reality... some people still need to rent, if you squeeze the number of rental properties then that causes serious problems for renters (as we've literally just been seeing), landlords are currently selling more than they're buying in the UK. The main issue here is simply a general lack of supply of housing.

 

[FoxEye]

So if a rich person buys an old building and restores it into a mansion then that's fine in your eyes... but if they took that same building and converted it into say 4 flats and rented out 3 of them they'd be depriving people of something somehow?

Or apparently, "enslaving" them?

Now think more broadly, you do realise that for every mansion that exists, there could be several dwellings built on the same site? But you're fine with mansions, you've got some irrational issues when it comes to someone owning more than one "home" of any size... even though in the real world, where most people aren't middle-aged guys still living with their parents, a private rental market is pretty essential.

Can you give any example of a mansion being converted into flats for commoners?

I imagine it's staggeringly rare if it's ever happened at all. Probably wouldn't be at all economical, given the cost of maintaining those old buildings, many of which are listed anyhow, so wouldn't be approved for planning.. You also couldn't knock them down to build social housing (why would you want to do this??!) if they're listed.

Honestly, of all the things I expected you to attack in my posting, converting mansions into flats is not what I'd have guessed

 

[dowie]

Can you give any example of a mansion being converted into flats for commoners?

Yes, it happens, in fact not just mansions but also former schools, townhouses in London which sell for low 7 figures can be turned into flats. In fact if you walk around central london you'll see plenty of both townhouses and former mansions with flat buzzers on the outside.

Or indeed a regular detached home in the suburbs may be knocked down too and a block of flats built in its place (it happened to a vicarage near my parents, several apartments were built on the same site).

So it's rather odd that you're in favour of owning a mansion when the site of a mansion (whether in the countryside or a large townhouse) could easily hold several homes.

Probably wouldn't be at all economical, given the cost of maintaining those old buildings, many of which are listed anyhow, so wouldn't be approved for planning.. You also couldn't knock them down to build social housing (why would you want to do this??!) if they're listed.

Most 7-bedroom mansions/houses are not listed AFAIK but that doesn't mean that listed buildings can't be converted either.

You'll probably find that the large mansions/buildings in the countryside that get converted into apartments are a bit larger than 7-bedroom homes, but there are plenty of 7 bedroom town houses/London mansions that do get converted.

 

[Lopéz]

Can you give any example of a mansion being converted into flats for commoners?

I imagine it's staggeringly rare if it's ever happened at all. Probably wouldn't be at all economical, given the cost of maintaining those old buildings, many of which are listed anyhow, so wouldn't be approved for planning.. You also couldn't knock them down to build social housing (why would you want to do this??!) if they're listed.

Honestly, of all the things I expected you to attack in my posting, converting mansions into flats is not what I'd have guessed

Orchard House, Charlotte Way - Mark Webster & Co.

***LUXURY 1 BED APARTMENT*** Mark Webster & Company are pleased to offer for let this well presented 1 bedroom ground floor apartment in Atherstone. The apartment offers in brief: large lounge, fitted kitchen, bathroom, master bedroom with built in wardrobes. The apartment is situated in the...

markwebsterandco.co.uk

I used to live nextdoor.

 

[dowie]

Orchard House, Charlotte Way - Mark Webster & Co.

***LUXURY 1 BED APARTMENT*** Mark Webster & Company are pleased to offer for let this well presented 1 bedroom ground floor apartment in Atherstone. The apartment offers in brief: large lounge, fitted kitchen, bathroom, master bedroom with built in wardrobes. The apartment is situated in the...

markwebsterandco.co.uk

I used to live nextdoor.

One of my friends lived in a building like that in Greenwich and plenty of the houses on her street were converted into flats, I'm not sure why this is something new to Foxeye, perhaps it's rarer in Cornwall.

 

[JonRGV250]

Not sure if it’s classed a mansion, but this is in the same village as my rental..

Check out this 1 bedroom apartment for rent on Rightmove

1 bedroom apartment for rent in High Street, Sproughton, Ipswich, IP8 for £750 pcm. Marketed by Fenn Wright, Ipswich

www.rightmove.co.uk

 

[X]

Better tell that to basically anyone selling any kind of food. Morrisons, Asda, Dominos... etc etc.

I know you produce your own food to avoid their vicious profiteering from your basic human needs, but most people just buy a pasta bake because they're hungry.

You must be spectacularly stupid if you think buying a loaf of bread for a quid is the same as buying a home.

 

[dowie]

Not sure if it’s classed a mansion, but this is in the same village as my rental..

Well, he mentioned 7 bedrooms so I presume he means houses like that... (basically something twice the size of a standard 3 or 4 bedroom house) otherwise he's got an inherent contradiction as the massive houses the likes of the national trust may own will have a lot more than 7 bedrooms if you're including servants' quarters etc.

If however, he did mean some really huge mansion in the countryside with many more bedrooms then they can be converted too:

Umberslade Hall, Pound House Lane, Hockley Heath, Solihull, B94 3 bed apartment - £550,000

John Shepherd - Solihull present this 3 bedroom apartment in Umberslade Hall, Pound House Lane, Hockley Heath, Solihull, B94

www.onthemarket.com

Basic principle though is many large homes could instead be replaced with multiple homes (in some cases just by knocking them down and reusing the plot) so the position of someone owning a big 7-bedroom "mansion" is something he's fine with but someone say converting that into flats or redeveloping the site and renting out some of them is not... or indeed someone living in a 3 or 4 bedroom house and renting out a small flat is not ok vs that is silly.

It just seems to be some irrational thing that people get triggered by the idea of someone being a landlord.

 

[JonRGV250]

To be honest, I gave up trying to understand his drivel a while ago.
The only thing he seems to achieve is to make himself look a bit silly.

 

[StriderX]

Another big issue we have in this country is the moronic fascination with keeping 'period' properties available to buy in ridiculous numbers because of reasons when a lot of them have issues with heat-management, moisture control, general maintenance and an inability to modify beyond some irrelevant 'local character' Nimby BS fascism.

Knock them all down and build complexes already christ.

 

[Scam]

Knock them all down and build complexes already christ.

You do realise there’s whole towns/villages/cities full of period properties? In many cases you don’t have to spend a fortune making them better insulated etc - I’d argue in some cases it’s probably cheaper going that route than buying an overpriced new build. In fact, dropping some decent money on a Victorian terraced house will probably give you a better house overall than a crappy new build with zero character.

What a daft opinion..

 

[Firestar_3x]

Knock them all down and build complexes already christ.

Yea, lets just concrete over everything, sounds absolutely fantastic, USSR architecture here we come.

 

[jonneymendoza]

Another big issue we have in this country is the moronic fascination with keeping 'period' properties available to buy in ridiculous numbers because of reasons when a lot of them have issues with heat-management, moisture control, general maintenance and an inability to modify beyond some irrelevant 'local character' Nimby BS fascism.

Knock them all down and build complexes already christ.

Let's start by knocking down your property?

 

[X]

Knock them all down and build complexes already christ.

Grey areas innit. I like the period stuff, I think driving through a little English village full of its Victorian buildings is absolutely lovely and something I'd be sad to see turned in to another Lego city full of built-to-the-lowest-price buildings.

That said some of the listed things I see really raise my eyebrows, I often come across things that are listed which get a genuine "wtaf" from me. Perhaps a more reasonable approach is needed.

 

[bigmike20vt]

Another big issue we have in this country is the moronic fascination with keeping 'period' properties available to buy in ridiculous numbers because of reasons when a lot of them have issues with heat-management, moisture control, general maintenance and an inability to modify beyond some irrelevant 'local character' Nimby BS fascism.

Knock them all down and build complexes already christ.

I would not go so far as knocking them down.... but the rules for tastefully modernising to keep them fit for purpose needs to be significantly relaxed.

I like seeing old manor houses in the countryside, there were a few in the village i grew up in...... but nothing good will come from not allowing them to be properly insulated, double glazed etc and allowing solar on their roof.

 

[StriderX]

Yea, lets just concrete over everything, sounds absolutely fantastic, USSR architecture here we come.

Works for Japan innit.

 

[Chris Wilson]

Another big issue we have in this country is the moronic fascination with keeping 'period' properties available to buy in ridiculous numbers because of reasons when a lot of them have issues with heat-management, moisture control, general maintenance and an inability to modify beyond some irrelevant 'local character' Nimby BS fascism.

Knock them all down and build complexes already christ.

Like the sixties towewr blocks that worked so well? I also think Greta Green might have something to say about the waste of resources needlessly knocking communities down just because they are "period" to erect some communist fantasy.

 

[jonneymendoza]

Like the sixties towewr blocks that worked so well? I also think Greta Green might have something to say about the waste of resources needlessly knocking communities down just because they are "period" to erect some communist fantasy.

They have transformed Tottenham to that now.

They have build massive tower blocks around Tottenham hale.

Some of them are literally half the size of the shard....

 

[Chris Wilson]

They have transformed Tottenham to that now.

They have build massive tower blocks around Tottenham hale.

Some of them are literally half the size of the shard....

Battery farming for people. De-beaked and de-spurred, vaccinated and muzzled against free speaking or free thinking.