With annual rates of return in excess of 11%, it’s no wonder more and more investors in the West Midlands are jumping on the buy-to-let bandwagon. Capital appreciation on buy-to-let properties of 8.6% was reported in the Midlands this month by ARLA, the leading industry body, in association with mortgage giants Birmingham Midshires, and NatWest.

“These figures confirm what we have been saying for a long time.” Said Sally Lawson of Lawsons Let. “It’s not too late to make good money from buying properties to rent out. The Midlands is a great area to invest in and properties here are significantly outperforming London and the South when it comes to achievable rents as a percentage of outlay.” She added.

The report showed that most buy-to-let owners are not professional landlords with extensive portfolios. On the contrary, more than half of all owners nationwide have just one or two properties and have been attracted into the business by the combined benefits of rental income and capital appreciation or by the desire to create a nest egg for their long term future.

Many of these people are opting to have their properties fully managed for them which means that their income is guaranteed and they have none of the day to day hassle of dealing with tenants.

Independent Financial Advisor, David Prior of Wolverhampton firm Crombies agrees that buy-to-let is a useful tool for investing in property and saving for the future. “We always advise clients to make a range of investments and ensure that they have a broad and even balance.” He said.

“We will probably never see a return to the heyday of buy-to-let when soaring house prices made people very rich overnight” warns Sally. “But for anybody with as little as £10,000 to invest, the returns are so much better than you could get anywhere else.”

More than 60% of Lawson’s clients are hoping to buy another property next year which is yet another indicator that Midlands landlords are fairing well from their investment decisions!

Full copies of the report are available from Lawsons.

For more information contact Hannah Hall 07967 342465 MPM Solutions Ltd