Investing in UK buy to let property as a foreign national: Case study

If as a foreign national you want to invest in UK property, you may be wondering what is possible. Not all mortgage brokers will be able to help with this, but we can. 

With no permanent right to reside in the UK, your mortgage application has a different risk profile to a lender, than someone originally from and living in this country. As such, not all buy to let mortgage lenders will accept your application. However, this is not the end of the road, as there are lenders who can help.

In the case study video below, we outline just such a scenario, where we helped a foreign national homeowner invest in a rental property.

What’s more, the property type the investor had chosen to buy was more specialist too. It was a flat in a large block which again poses more risk to the lender. 

Complex cases really are where we can flex our broking muscles, so if you are struggling as a landlord or prospective property investor to get a mortgage, get in touch. We often help clients who have been to other brokers whose specialism is outside this area of finance and we can find a solution where others haven’t been able to.

Watch the video below for the low-down, a transcript of what is discussed is underneath it.

Video guide transcript: Foreign national BTL investment with a homeowner business loan to top up a deposit

“If you're a foreign national looking to invest in property in the UK, as a property investor or landlord, it can be a little bit tricky. 

“The number of lenders that are open to you as an investor are a little bit more restricted, but we can help. 

“We were approached by a client in exactly this situation, and there are a couple more complications about the case that I'm going to share with you. 

“So, first of all, the individual was on a skilled worker visa, living in the UK, they owned their own home here and they wanted to buy an investment property. It was a flat on the eighth floor of a block. 

“Now, when it comes to blocks of flats lenders tend but a cap on the loan to value, where you go from the sixth floor and up, because that property overall is obviously a very large premises and it carries additional risk as a result. 

“Not only that, but in this situation a lot of the other flats in the block were owned by other investors, who were renting those properties out. 

“And again, in thinking about the resaleability of the property, some lenders won't be comfortable with that, because as a homeowner you might look on that as unfavourable, if you were buying that property as your own home.

“So, they need to look at the whole picture and for some lenders that will sit outside their criteria. 

“However, we were able to find a lender who could help in this situation, who would accept the client as a foreign national with no permanent right to reside in the UK. 

“We also helped the client, because with the capping on the loan to value, their deposit fell a little bit short.

“So, what we did was put a homeowner business loan on their own home, to raise that additional amount and get them in a position where they have the deposit that they needed. 

“If that's something that you need help with, or if you're struggling to get a financial solution because you've got what's called an investor-led flat in a block (where there's a lot of investor ownership of other flats surrounding you), or you are a foreign national looking to invest in property in the UK, do get in touch. 

“You can put a comment below or give us a call on the phone number in our profile. 

“Or you can find us online at commercialtrust.co.uk.

“We'd love to hear from you."