With the rising popularity of lease options as a solution for residential property owners who can’t move on, media interest in unscrupulous ‘investors’ abusing what can and should be a genuine win-win solution grows.
A programme recently aired on Radio 5 Live helps sellers understand the implications and risks of granting a third party a long-term lease option over a property they own. You can download a pod-cast of the programme by clicking on the link above, or at the end of this post.
Sadly, some investors, such as Phil Martin, have done little to recommend the investor community to those who can benefit from lease options, and clearly property sellers need to take steps to protect themselves from dealing with unscrupulous investors.
Lease options used well can be a powerful solution, and it is a good thing that stricter regulation may be imposed by the FSA and CML.
Transparency and Fairness in Lease Option Transactions Vital
For the ethical lease option investor coverage like this is an excellent opportunity to underline the importance of complete transparency in every transaction.
This interview further underlines a main point that Lease Options Made Simple has been making for years – that Lease Options are not the best solution for vendors who are in serious financial difficulty.
Richard Bowser, Editor of Property Investor News, a thoroughly researched and well written publication for property investors in the UK, also highlights the fact that there are some investors who are using lease options ethically and as if they were already regulated.
This is the approach we at Lease Options Made Simple have always espoused and supported.
For more information, or if you have been approached by a lease option investor and would like to know how you can protect yourself from rogue traders, just write to info@leaseoptionsmadesimple.co.uk
Listen to the recent Radio 5 Live programme on Lease Options as a pod-cast here.
