Yes - some but not all lenders will approve a first time buyer.  More property investors are doing this as it becomes harder to get on the property ladder in some areas, so rather than have to move away from their work, you can get into property and build equity and income to help get your own home at a later date.

Yes - but it might change the status of your buy to let mortgage so discuss your plans with your advisor at the earliest opportunity.

Yes - this is called a consumer let to buy and can be arranged with many buy to let lenders.

Just let us know the property details and where you'll be moving to and we can go ahead, remortgaging your property and helping you to purchase a new home through Acorn.mortgage.

There's no minimum earnings limit, so long as you're able to cover your outgoings with your current income and you don't have to rely on the property to prop you up, it's fine.

The mortgage is calculated on the rent from the property, that can mean your own earnings are not taken into account. If the rent's too low though you could top it up from your earnings.

Currently the minimum deposit you need for your buy to let mortgage is 15% of the property value - so an 85% mortgage.  This varies so please check with us to ensure you know what's available to you and when you're looking.  It can be possible to fund the deposit from other property or assets so in some cases you could get 100% funding and not have to put a deposit down at all.

It can be a bit more complex to set your buy to let mortgage up than a residential mortgage, after all this is a business investment. Our experts deal with this every day and will make the process as easy as possible for you.

With the government legislating to ensure let properties are energy efficient and the general maintenance required on your properties cashflow can sometimes be an issue. Fortunately, with our access to short term lenders and second charges, there's always a solution even if you're tied into long fixed rates. 

Yes! Once your portfolio is big enough to support your needs then why not? There are plenty of buy-to-let mortgage lenders who will look at your overall financial position and do not require a certain level of employed earnings.

Don't sell! House price corrections are only an issue if you have to sell during that period. A diverse portfolio will help you to ride recessions or further changes to benefits and keep the rent flooding in. If house prices dip and you have the ability then it's a great time to buy!

A house of multiple occupation (HMO) is becoming more commonplace as housing costs rise. The definition of an HMO is three or more households living in a property with some shared facilities. (Kitchen, bathroom or toilet facilities). If each tenant has fully private facilities then the property becomes a "multi-let" or is a block of flats!

Larger HMOs and those in specific areas require licencing, check with your local authority if you're not sure.

HMO properties are sometimes valued based on rental yields, this is referred to as a commercial valuation. Some lenders will accept this as the value for lending if certain criteria are met;

• • • The property is in an area where other HMO development would be restricted, by "Article 4" or other means.
    • The conversion of the property is such that it would not be easy to replicate in the immediate area.
    • Lenders may also look at property usage and values.

In cases where these criteria are not met then the lender will lend against the standard value of the empty property (vacant possession) and some lenders might reduce that by the amount required to convert the house back to standard family usage.

Yes - Your Acorn.finance advisor will be able to help here, so long as you check the local licensing requirements a bridging loan will help to fund the purchase and the conversion then refinance straight away onto a long term mortgage.