Many are predicting a buy-to-let ‘boom and bust’ before the 3% stamp duty surcharge comes into force in April 1 2016.
More purchasers than remortgagors are expected to apply for buy-to-let mortgages in the first quarter of 2016, Mortgages for Business managing director David Whittaker has predicted.
This would be a reversal of the trend in 2015, when buy-to-let remortgage transactions outstripped purchasers by more than 2:1.
Many are predicting a buy-to-let ‘boom and bust’ before the 3% stamp duty surcharge comes into force in April 1 2016.
Whittaker said: “The results aren’t surprising; for some time now landlords have been making considerable savings through remortgaging. Many have also been releasing equity to make improvements and plan further purchases.
“However, I anticipate that we will see a reversal of this trend in the first quarter of this year as landlords hurry to expand their portfolios before the stamp duty surcharge kicks in on 1 April.
“The number of enquiries for purchase finance is already well ahead of where we were this time last year, particularly from those looking to sell their personally owned property into a corporate vehicle.”
