As a landlord, or more specifically, perhaps a new/upcoming landlord, have you ever been torn between multiple properties? A landlord’s main concern should be buying the property which will offers the best ROI (Return On Investment). Perhaps an important aspect many landlords don’t pay enough attention to, as they’re too busy focusing on the superficials. While that’s not a terrible thing, it’s important to remember why you’re buying the property in the first place- for an investment; to make money! So you want a property that will make you the most income! So how do you work that out?
Example scenario
John wants to be a landlord, so he’s on the hunt to buy a property. John has seen 2 properties he likes. Property 1 costs 150,000 with a potential rental return of £600pcm. Property 2 costs £180,000 with a potential rental return of £775pcm. Which is the better buy?
This when is calculating the “rental yield” will help.
What is rental yield?
Yield is a way of calculating the ROI on your BTL; it uses the rental income over the initial cost of buying the property, and is usually expressed as a percentage.
There are different ways of calculating yield, but in our case, we’re going to use the most common for BTL: the ‘rental yield’ is the total amount of rent minus the running costs (mortgage payments, insurance, repairs and maintenance etc.), divided by the total amount invested to purchase the property (that should include all fees, including tax and legal fees).
The higher the yield, the better.
Calculating rental yield
The formula:
mrr = monthly rental return
i = investment
Yield = mrr*12/i*100
Rental yield for Property 1
Monthly rental return = £600
Investment = £150,000
£600 * 12 = £7,200
£7,200 / £150,000 = 0.048
0.048 * 100 = 4.8 % yield
Rental yield for Property 2
Monthly rental return = £775
Investment = £180,000
£775 * 12 = £9,300
£9,300 / £180,000 = 0.0516
0.0516 * 100 = 5.16 % yield
Conclusion
Although property 1 costs less to buy, property 2 offers the better ROI. However, it’s important to note that the yield can change over the duration of the investment, as house prices change.
What is a good return yield percentage?
Well, it’s actually a subjective issue. I personally think any property which has a return yield of 7%+ is extremely good. I certainly wouldn’t put my nose up at a property which generates that kind of yield.
To make life easier (because that’s what I’m all about), you can use the calculator below to calculate your yield…
Points to remember
While calculating the yield of a BTL property is relatively straight forward, there are a few points to consider:
- Void periods – ignoring void periods is a common mistake, and if you fall victim it can easily skew your calculations. When calculating the yield, bear in mind that it’s unlikely you will always have a occupied property for 12 months of the year, so the total income won’t always be 12 months x £Monthly rent. There maybe times where you will have void periods, whether it be in-between tenants or at the very beginning of your investment. So you may want to “stress-test” your calculations by using 11 months’ worth of rental income.
- Rent – If you’re in the midst of your research phase, and you don’t know how much rent your prospective investments can achieve, you can look on portals like Rightmove, Zoopla and Guntree to see what other similar properties in the same area are demanding. Alternatively, you could talk to a local letting agent. However, bear in mind, the “asking price” isn’t always the amount achieved.
- Total costs – when calculating your yield, it’s important to use the real figures to get the most accurate calculations. So when using the total investment amount, it should include ALL your costs, which may include the following:
- Cost of property
- Tenant acquisition
- Insurance
- Mortgage product/arrangement fee
- Solicitor fees
- Survey fees
- Any other legal fees
- Cost of redecorating/maintenance
- Running costs during void periods (e.g. council tax, utility bills)
- Costs of furniture/white goods
- Be wary of yield calculations – when you hear agents or developers talk of yields they can often sound incredibly attractive, and this is when you should start asking questions. They often make their calculations based on basic cost of the property and essentially ignoring all the costs associated with buying the property (as per the list mentioned above), which obviously skyrockets the yield and makes the deal seem sweeter than it actually is! Buyer beware!
Top 50 Buy-to-Let Hotspots by Rental Yield in England & Wales
HSBC has released a report showing the average rental yields for the top Buy-to-Let hotspots of England and Wales based on data from the Office of National Statistics (ONS) and Land Registry.
While these are only averages, and don’t account for ‘special cases’, which include high-yielding gems, it does give a good indication where the highest yielding areas are.
The following data was published on the 30th May, 2014.
| Location | Percentage of Rental Housing Stock | Average House Price | Average Rent (Monthly) | Average Rent (Annual) | Rental Yield (gross) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southampton | 23.42% | £138,311 | £901 | £10,812 | 7.82% |
| Blackpool | 24.16% | £75,943 | £494 | £5,928 | 7.81% |
| Kingston upon Hull | 19.02% | £69,519 | £450 | £5,400 | 7.77% |
| Manchester | 26.85% | £102,631 | £650 | £7,800 | 7.60% |
| Nottingham | 21.64% | £83,313 | £524 | £6,288 | 7.55% |
| Coventry | 19.02% | £104,970 | £624 | £7,488 | 7.13% |
| Slough | 23.07% | £171,581 | £975 | £11,700 | 6.82% |
| Oxford | 26.11% | £244,893 | £1,375 | £16,500 | 6.74% |
| Liverpool | 21.75% | £91,012 | £498 | £5,976 | 6.57% |
| Portsmouth | 22.28% | £141,971 | £775 | £9,300 | 6.55% |
| Cardiff | 20.32% | £140,882 | £750 | 9000 | 6.39% |
| Cambridge | 23.91% | £179,699 | £949 | £11,388 | 6.34% |
| Southwark | 22.22% | £401,405 | £2,058 | £24,696 | 6.15% |
| Luton | 21.27% | £127,473 | £650 | £7,800 | 6.12% |
| Newham | 32.62% | £229,141 | £1,126 | £13,512 | 5.90% |
| Leicester | 21.28% | £112,226 | £550 | £6,600 | 5.88% |
| Bournemouth | 28.21% | £170,493 | £825 | £9,900 | 5.81% |
| Enfield | 21.18% | £261,163 | £1,200 | £14,400 | 5.51% |
| Brighton and Hove | 28.04% | £229,622 | £1,049 | £12,588 | 5.48% |
| Brent | 28.82% | £337,723 | £1,517 | £18,204 | 5.39% |
| Forest Heath | 21.80% | £179,699 | £795 | £9,540 | 5.31% |
| Torbay | 21.43% | £139,168 | £598 | £7,176 | 5.16% |
| Southend-on-Sea | 20.72% | £152,171 | £650 | £7,800 | 5.13% |
| Watford | 18.89% | £240,239 | £997 | £11,964 | 4.98% |
| Bristol, City of | 22.11% | £169,425 | £695 | £8,340 | 4.92% |
| Kingston upon Thames | 21.04% | £333,122 | £1,363 | £16,356 | 4.91% |
| Reading | 24.68% | £196,309 | £795 | £9,540 | 4.86% |
| Hounslow | 22.23% | £285,927 | £1,148 | £13776 | 4.82% |
| Wandsworth | 30.02% | £428,987 | £1,694 | £20,328 | 4.74% |
| Lewisham | 22.97% | £283,031 | £1,101 | £13,212 | 4.67% |
| Shepway | 20.17% | £181,399 | £695 | £8,340 | 4.60% |
| Tower Hamlets | 30.84% | £364,296 | £1,387 | £16,644 | 4.57% |
| Eastbourne | 21.65% | £177,408 | £675 | £8,100 | 4.57% |
| Harrow | 20.37% | £306,381 | £1,148 | £13,776 | 4.50% |
| Croydon | 19.83% | £254,591 | £949 | £11,388 | 4.47% |
| Exeter | 19.56% | £187,680 | £693 | £8,316 | 4.43% |
| Isles of Scilly | 20.63% | £180,227 | £654 | £7848 | 4.35% |
| Lincoln | 19.36% | £119,076 | £429 | £5,148 | 4.32% |
| Redbridge | 21.63% | £292,459 | £1,049 | £12,588 | 4.30% |
| Cheltenham | 20.15% | £170,573 | £598 | £7,176 | 4.21% |
| Ipswich | 18.75% | £153,163 | £524 | £6,288 | 4.11% |
| Richmond upon Thames | 20.55% | £485,496 | £1,647 | £19,764 | 4.07% |
| Westminster | 37.56% | £767,112 | £2,578 | £30,936 | 4.03% |
| Norwich | 20.10% | £179,699 | £598 | £7,176 | 3.99% |
| Camden | 30.46% | £646,043 | £2,145 | £25,740 | 3.98% |
| Hastings | 27.19% | £177,408 | £550 | £6,600 | 3.72% |
| Haringey | 30.33% | £372,278 | £1,148 | £13,776 | 3.70% |
| Thanet | 21.96% | £181,399 | £524 | £6,288 | 3.47% |
| Hammersmith and Fulham | 30.05% | £593,787 | £1,690 | £20,280 | 3.42% |
| Kensington and Chelsea | 33.97% | £1,090,943 | £3,033 | £36,396 | 3.34% |
Dear Guy
I never write a post, this is my first!...I wanted to say how I found your nononsense, open thoughts on investment very helpful. After most of a lifetime working hard and with no experience in investing and with no pension to speak of I have recently found myself, following the sale of some property, in the position of needing to invest cash into something that will secure an imminent retirement. I have been looking at BTL property as I have rented property in the past but have had concerns as to the risk and the actual return (yield). Your posts have helped me to look at this more clearly and perhaps consider other options.
Kind regards
Colin