Lender says they are taken possession of investment property in 10 days from today.

The rent on mortgage one is €500 monthly mortgage is €980.
The rent on mortgage two is €780, monthly mortgage is €1,050.
I am paying €470 monthly to cover interest only on each mortgage.
It would be interesting and I think relevant to know if this was always the case since you took out the mortgages? I assume you took out the loans on the 2 investment properties in the "celtic tiger" era? Interest rates were a bit higher then? Did you pay the full mortgage amount then, or have you just recently gone in to arrears? Can you afford to make up the balance of the mortgage from your own earnings or savings, as many investors are having to do? If you have been in arrears for 5 or 6 years and especially if you can afford to pay additional money / the balance, I think the bank is right in repossessing at least one of the properties, if not both.

If the property is rented / capable of being rented for €500 a month now, it must be in reasonable condition in a not-very-bad location. There is no reason why you could not have rented it for €450 or €400 to someone a month for the 5 months instead of leaving it empty. Maybe the bank thinks you can pay more, but are not prepared to? There are plenty of properties in the country which cannot be rented for the €500 p.m. you are currently getting, so you should count yourself lucky in one way. Why not offer the bank all of the rent you can get - and pay for repairs / insurance / maintenance yourself at least? Its likely you could have afforded to at least do that when you took out the loans - did you?
 
You dont get a better tenant by lowering the rent, more than likely you will get a worse tenant
 
You dont get a better tenant by lowering the rent, more than likely you will get a worse tenant

Supply and Demand still rules.

What you WILL get if you lower the rent - is more callers. From that pool of callers - it us up to YOU the LL to vet each one - and determine what you deem is a "good tenant". What I consider as a good tenant - always pays on time - never rings me to fix anything - is not necessarily my neighbors choice.

In my RL experience, raising the rent too far will limit me to only one type of tenant - one on some form of SW relief. The more I charge the rent too high - the more SW relief is needed to pay my rent.

I can price the good tenants out of the market by raising the rent just a little too much. No income families with multitudes of children will be my ONLY advert-callers. Sure they pay up no problem - its O.P.M. that they are spending - they don't even quibble on the rent.

If i want to attract a tenant that gives my neighbors no trouble - and can also afford to pay every month - then i have to price it keenly with the supply that exists around me.
 
Hi mrpepeless

I got the same letter as you and i'm with the same bank. They didnt repossess the property they just appointed a receiver to take in the rent.

That was approx 5 weeks ago now and no word from them since.

NM
 
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This is my experience too. A good tenant knows they are a good tenant and can negotiate a better price.

A tenant who is willing to pay any price is usually bad news.
 
I had the opposite experience, tbh. Though its a while back, so perhaps its changed in the last couple of years, and it was an area with a shortage of housing so no problem with demand. But I would expect it varies depending on the demand in the area, the ceiling of the RA, and the condition of the property.