PRA should clarify landlord arrears comment

The PRA’s September 2016 policy statement Underwriting standards for buy-to-let mortgage contracts says “arrears rates increase as portfolio size increases”.

Mortgage broker Lee Grandin has called on the Prudential Regulatory Authority to break down its claim that arrears rates are higher for landlords with large portfolios.

The PRA’s September 2016 policy statement Underwriting standards for buy-to-let mortgage contractssays “arrears rates increase as portfolio size increases”.

But Grandin, who is chief executive of mortgage brokerage Landlord Mortgages and B2B company Lend2landlord, thinks the regulator needs to separate pre and post-2008 portfolio landlords rather than tarring everyone with the same brush.

He said: “The PRA’s new rules on buy-to-let are clearly sending out a strong signal, and rightly so, but they really should clarify this statement to avoid barking up the wrong tree.

“They haven’t provided the stats that came to that conclusion.

“And I very much doubt that one of my clients who has a portfolio of 100 plus properties where they have added only 10 properties post credit crunch are at a higher risk of default than the landlord who created a sizeable portfolio post credit crunch.

“If there was a significant price correction asset prices won’t fall past 2008 levels.”