15
Apr
Most smaller landlords 'unhurt by regulations'
Many landlords are unlikely to be affected by new Houses in
Multiple Occupation (HMO) regulations if they operate in university
towns, it has been claimed.
Such rules would be aimed more specifically at "professional"
investors and so the majority of buy-to-let individuals in such
areas would not find a problem, the Association of Residential
Letting Agents spokesman, Malcolm Harrison, noted.
Restrictions will not work against these people if they come into
place, Mr Harrison contended, because HMOs are used in the main
elsewhere at the higher end of the industry.
"You do get buy-to-let investments in flats and houses in
university towns, but they won't - on the whole - be geared with
HMOs," he commented.
Landlords will usually know, he added, if a particular market is
too saturated for investment.
Housing minister Caroline Flint recently stated that such
developments could be managed with greater care after a number of
problems sprung up.