What property NOT to buy in Leamington Spa

When investing in property, it’s easy to get it wrong. Before I was a lettings agent, I bought a new build 1 bed flat because that’s what everyone else seemed to be doing. I still have it – mainly because no one is going to take it off me for the price I paid for it!

You live and learn. But it’s important to remember that you make your money when you BUY a property, not when you sell it. If you buy at the wrong price, it’s more or less impossible to rectify that going forwards unless a rising property market saves you. 

 

 

If you buy sensibly, you can also expect to sell sensibly if you ever need to. Try to avoid:

• Simply overpriced. Once you’ve established you can buy a nice 2 bed property in a given area for £X, don’t pay £X + £5,000 for one because you’re impatient. If you overpay at the point of purchase, you’re playing “catch up” regarding the value of the property from day 1 ....  So DON’T overpay!

• Needs work, and this isn’t reflected in the price. DON’T be put off by properties that need work, as these are often the best buys. But DO ensure this is reflected in the price. If it’s £X for a nice one, its £X minus £5,000 for one that needs a kitchen and bathroom.

• Unrealistic rental price. If you’re buying in an area where flats rent for £550.00, don’t expect yours to rent for £600.00 on the basis that it’s just been painted – expect it to rent for £500.00 if you don’t paint it!

• Lacking key features. If you’re buying in the suburbs to attract the family market, don’t buy the one house on the street that has no garden, or no parking. Families want gardens!

What lets well in Leamington Spa?

I have already said that everything rents. Whilst we can’t predict the future, we can only see the demand for these properties increasing when you consider:

• The population continues to grow, but not enough housing is being built.
• The number of single person households continues to increase, and the number of families occupying 2 houses (due to marital breakdown) increases also.
• The amount of money required to purchase a property is more than many people can afford. This is resulting in an increased demand for ‘family properties’ as people increasingly turn to rental to meet their long term housing needs.

Condition of Property

We mention it again, because it’s important. Tenants would rather live in a well presented shed than a dilapidated palace! This doesn’t mean you have to spend a fortune on improvements, just make sure it’s clean, neutral, and the kitchen and bathroom are modern.

Size of Property

A 4 bed house will rent, but there’s always most demand for smaller units – studio or 1 beds close to town or 2 or 3 bed properties in the suburbs. There’s an increasing demand for 3 bed family properties out of town. People who rent don’t want hassle so are generally more concerned with the practicality and ease of a property, rather than having something they can fall in love with.

 

Price of Property

The bottom end of the market is in particularly high demand. A nice room in a shared house will cost about £400PCM including bills, but some people want their own space and don’t want to share. For that reason, anything you can offer to the market that’s inexpensive (under £400 plus bills or under £500 including bills) will always rent well. It doesn’t matter if it’s tiny as long as it’s self-contained. Landlords who cut larger properties into selfcontained studios do particularly well.

Housing Benefit

There’s massive demand for properties that accept tenants in receipt of benefits, particularly 1 beds and 2 beds. The Local Authority waiting list is currently in the thousands

Christmas is nearly here

Well I have been focused in the last four weeks in selling properties and Guess what we have four properties SSTC and two new instructions for the New Year. Its been amazing and an eye opener, I have watched my Estate Agency neighbours for 6 years and wondered how I could ever be as pro-active as them !!!. I often wonder why we are prepared to accept poor Customer service in many areas of our life's but this may be why opportunities get created for more caring companies.

Its clear we are in a honeymoon period with this new side of the business but avenues are opening up for us to ensure that the business really grows in 2014. It really feels exciting and I am genuinely looking forward to next year.

We lost our negotiator Samantha recently which was sad as she is a very genuine person who I wish all the very best for. However we managed to recruit a possible future star for the business a young let called Henry who starts with is on the 2nd of January. Now the recruitment industry is something that really does frustrate me, we advertised the job with 3 agencies and ended up getting Henry from Facebook.

As the business winds down for Xmas thoughts turn to social event etc and I don't mind admitting that I am participating in Murder Mystery evening on Boxing Night playing the part of some geezer called Dickie Charles !!. I am left wondering why I agree to these things

That's it for now, have a great Xmas and Happy New Year.

Its December!

Yes, I am back again for another go at this blogging stuff, covering the latest in the Letting Industry, trying to grow a Letting agency and recent education !!

As many of you know I have a fabulous wife ( Jan ) who has lectured me on the subject of planning, target setting and objectives for the business and why it is required. There has been times when I felt she has been working in partnership with Martin & Co's Head  office statistical Guru John Coupe. However this October I finally decided to have a go at this planning stuff and attended an ARLA course on the subject WOW the lights have gone on !! - Heard this phrase mentioned so many times and surprisingly it was understood straight away "Marginal Gains" "Marginal Gains" "Marginal Gains" "Marginal Gains" at first I was wondering what the coach Dave Brailsford knew about lettings.

I have been planning changes and implementing small changes for the last two weeks and already we have started to benefit financially. I need to bring it all together for 2014 and during this process looking forward to visiting one of Martin & Co's leading Franchisees in Gloucester Mr Peter Grieve. I do think there is some great business experience in our Network.

We started Sales in August and it never really got going, I would admit that it was due to the success of lettings and a poor understanding of the Sales process. However Great News, Sales could be the best decision Martin & Co Head office have made for my business in 7 years. No Sales yet but we now offer a service that covers all options for a landlord selling and an investor purchasing. I completed a viewing last night on an apartment and the Investor left taking our details for all his future properties, its great getting a half an hour to sell my company.

Big subject in the last week is the requirement for Letting Agents to display fees, this could turn into a serious rant as it really does not feel clear what we are supposed to do. A really good friend was listening to a debate on Radio 4 on this subject which prompted the question "Sean, who represents Letting Agents" well after much thought on this subject and consideration on how to answer I said " ARLA, NAEA, NALS, NFOPP and possibly RICS.  If we had one body governing and regulating Lettings surely we would present a more professional image and possibly a better understanding with our clients.

Finally thought for the week on the business front, I spend a lot of time reading and looking for the Magic Secret to successful management from running a business to managing people and I am beginning to think there isn't one..... Might come back on this subject next time

Quick update on stopping running, not sure I know how to after 26 years of trying to stay fit and running marathons.

Thank you for reading this and if you want to comment please do...