BUY-TO-LET SQUEEZING FTBs

With the current market conditions and strong rental growth, buy-to-let investors are doing very well with a strong demand for rented property. But, this isn't good news for first time buyers because buy-to-let investors are usually able to put down a 25-40% deposit and are therefore a much more attractive prospect to lenders. They require lower loan-to-value loans and have a proven track record of repaying mortgages. On the other hand, a typical first time buyer will be looking for a high loan-to-value mortgage and with the current lending criteria, lenders would rather allocate the limited funds they have, to the lower risk option. As interest rates have remained so low, landlords have not been hit by the recession as much as they feared and find themselves in a fairly comfortable position. With more cashflow than they originally thought they would have and the prospect of any future rate rises to be covered by rental increases.