Why Become a Landlord? - all of these retirement uncertainties mean more and more people are turning to Buy-to-Let as a flexible, controlled means of long term saving for early retirement. Once the mortgage is paid off you have an income to live off (or own an asset outright that you can sell) in your retirement. Unlike a pension (you cannot access until you are at least 55 and that is controlled by a faceless fund manager); with Property you can see it, control it, generate an income from it, sell it (usually within a few months). Property is a flexible form of investment where you can easily control and minimise the risks of failure. The most basic idea that someone else is going to pay your mortgage off for you is very appealing for an increasing number of people.