The so-called King and Queen of Buy To Let, the controversial husband and wife team of Fergus and Judith Wilson, are reported to be worth some £140m.
Insider Media publishes an annual Rich List of wealthy individuals based in the south east of England and puts the Wilsons at number 28.
The list entry says: “The Wilsons became known as the king and queen of buy to let. The husband and wife team built up a portfolio of nearly 1,000 properties in Kent at their peak. In 2016 the pair announced the sale of half of the houses for around £125m – with 350 being snapped up by foreign buyers and another 50 by tenants.
“The Wilsons are believed to have owed around £40 to £45m on their estate before the sale. They announced earlier in 2019 that they are selling the remaining 300 properties of their portfolio for around £90m. After tax on the sales, the pair should be left with around £140m.”
Over many years Letting Agent Today has chronicled the varied views and exploits of the Wilsons.
A year ago Fergus Wilson told LAT that any landlord taking tenants with children should be given a one per cent discount per tenancy year on Capital Gains Tax for that specific property, while in 2018 Judith Wilson was fined £10,000 and ordered to pay almost £15,000 costs for failing to comply with an enforcement notice ordering her to supply hot water to a disabled tenant.
In 2017 - following controversal comments about food smells in properties occupied by some tenants - images of Fergus Wilson were posted close to some of his properties in Kent carrying allegations of racism.
Two years earlier, in an interview with The Guardian newspaper, he allegedly said he was raising some of his rents by 33 per cent and blamed then-Chancellor George Osborne for reducing the amount of top-end tax that could be offset against mortgage interest.
%20-%20IMAGE%20Client%20Accounting%20%E2%80%93%20what%20are%20your%20options.jpg)
Join the conversation
Jump to latest comment and add your reply
I don't blame them selling up.
Other LL should do the same.
I know I am.
It is clear that Govt intends to eradicate LL.
If LL refuse to go expect to be taxed to the hilt.
Govt has a rather large bill to be paid after recent events.
Guess who's gonna be clobbered for more tax!!!?
Govt will carry on squeezing those LL pips until they are shouting not just squeaking!!!
The Wilsons are being very shrewd in offloading their properties.
I doubt between them they will be able to spend all their £140 mill before they depart this world!!
Best of luck to them, they deserve it after all they've had to put up with from
Tenants,
Tenant support groups, - Shelter,
Local Authority,
Media, and
various other jealous individuals.
Hi Paul
I’m actually thinking about expanding my portfolio. Where are you based?
There a funny pair, I once set next to them at a charity event in Guildford.Lovely conversation but he was a bit over the top with his hatred of taxes and the government. He had just told me the previous moment he'd bought a new Jag and was looking at a holiday in Mauritius for christmas. He also forked out £750 for the charity dinner, so didn't feel the taxes were ruining his quality of life.
I fear he gives a lot of us a bad name, very demanding of the tenants and has a lot of stipulations, his "No Battered Wives" policy was a bit cruel I thought, but as I said he's more driven by cash than being a good person in the eyes of the lord. To each is own I suppose, i hope my tenants sing my praises at the Pearly Gates!
I understand your point Ashley and I think from a P.R. perspective, he could have handled things differently.
But as Paul says, Fergus 'said it as it was' and he had no shortage of Landlord-haters ( of the categories I've mentioned. - Those are the real enemy of landlords. )
Look at the TV programme made biasedly to make him look a car-crash.
BBC ( known for their bias, especially of late ) managed to find a handful of his 000's of Tenants that had some gripes and the Wilson's weren't even properly able to respond to them.
I think you'll find that his strictures on tenant types was as a consequence of many of them damaging the property or not paying rent.
Battered wives were guilty of these.
Of course some of the rent defaulting was caused by the dysfunctional UC system.
But to him and me it still means rent not paid.
So I have the same strictures as him including no constant curry eaters.
He just publicised his requirements.
Mine are the same but nobody will ever know why they are refused.
.Subject to Status
Covers everything.
@neil gillon
4 flats in Bishop's Stortford on riverbank
Cost you about £1.2 million as a full retail price.
No discounts.
Retail price or I'll just carry on letting as am making good money.
Don't really need the money or the hassle that goes with it!!
My intent would be to ideally sell all 4 flats and convert to a 4 bed house in BS where I would reside and take in lodgers not tenants.
Interested!!?
Please login to comment