This depends on your personal circumstances, but there is a range of factors to consider when entering the buy-to-let market. This also depends on what type of investment you are looking to make, and what you are looking to achieve from your investment. Let’s look at some advantages and disadvantages.

The obvious advantages of buy-to-let include the fact that you can earn rental income from properties. In some locations towards the north, your rental yield can reach up to 8%. Additionally, you could experience capital growth as both your investment and the property value increase. Finally, there is a range of insurance options available to protect you against loss of rental income when a property is vacant, and from damage and legal costs.

On the other hand, you will likely have a significantly higher tax bill, and you will have to allow for insurance, natural wear and tear, and stamp duty into your expenses. Furthermore, if you don’t have the correct insurance, then vacant spells and damage to your property will not be covered. Another thing to consider is that if the value of the property falls, your capital will also decrease. With an interest-only BTL mortgage, you will have to make the difference if the property is sold for less than what you bought it for.

Remember that being a landlord is a big responsibility too! You will also have to keep your knowledge up to date of laws, regulations, and your obligations to your tenants.

Not all buy-to-let mortgages are interest only, though many are, and many landlords will opt for an interest only BTL mortgage. This is because they will only pay the interest on the mortgage each month, so their monthly payments are lower, and so they can profit more from rental income.

As discussed above, a BTL mortgage typically (and in short) means that the landlord will only pay the interest on the mortgage each month, so the balance owed remains constant throughout the term. However, at the end of the term, they must pay off the balance in full.

By being able to take a greater surplus from monthly rental income (due to smaller monthly mortgage payments), landlords can improve profit margins and can put aside more for unexpected property costs, invest in improvements, or save more to invest in new property.

The answer to this is highly variable. It largely depends on the lender(s) that you are seeking buy-to-let mortgages from, with some lenders limiting the number of buy-to-let mortgages you have with them, and others limiting the number of buy-to-let mortgages you have at any one time with other lenders.

Some lenders have what is termed an ‘exposure limit’, with can limit the number of buy-to-let mortgages you have with them at any given time (for example, to four or five), or can limit the total value of your total buy-to-let mortgages with them to a set value (£5 million, for example), or a combination of both.

Other lenders will have exposure limits in place for other lenders. This means that to get a buy-to-let mortgage with a particular lender, they will place a restriction on the total number of, or the total value of buy-to-let mortgages that you have with other lenders before they will grant you one. These are highly variable among lenders, but many will not impose this.