The UK is in lockdown and many businesses have ground to a halt. How is this affecting landlords and how can you get support? The Chancellor has announced a raft of measures, here is a summary of what’s available and some of the issues involved::

1. Mortgage Payment Holiday
This was one of the earliest announcements made by the Chancellor. Lenders were initially required to give homeowners a three month payment holiday and this was later extended to residential landlords. Some lenders ask for simple self-certification by the mortgage account holder through an online process, others require evidence that the tenant of the relevant property is unable to pay rent. There is then a process of negotiation for up to three months payment holiday – it is not just a blanket policy.

UK Finance, which is the association for lenders, says “mortgage providers will make every effort to ensure that if you take a payment holiday it does not negatively impact on your credit score.” This will probably mean that credit reference agencies will record an agreed zero payment rather than a missed payment. Some commentators see this as a no brainer as landlords can reduce tenants’ rent by the amount they save by not paying the mortgage and still retain the same cashflow. For myself, I remain sceptical and am reluctant to damage my credit file as I expect to need to raise finance in the coming months.

Tenants caught on quite quickly to the idea that landlords were getting a three month holiday from their mortgages and there has been a lot of misunderstanding. Some thought that they could stop paying rent for three months without realising that this would result in arrears that would have to be paid back at some point. And mortgages are only part of our costs as landlords – what about the £2,000 we might need tomorrow if a boiler needs replacing?

I would recommend that you continue to pay your mortgages if you possibly can and advise tenants on other options, which I cover later on.