ON THE HOUSE Magazine - Issue 4

ON THE HOUSE

23 RENOVATION STATION

How

TAKE COVER

Tips to help you build a bulletproof portfolio from brokers and investors Ramsay & White

BEGINNER’S CORNER

Want to get going in property but don’t know where to start?. The answer is literally on p34

ON THE HOUSE MAGAZINE

5 EDITOR’S LETTER

6

10

12

14

There’s value in them there hills say Julian Pletts

IN CASE YOU MISSED

A round up of useful and actionable developments in the property investment world

REGULATORY ROUND-UP

Do not skip this page - we’ve collated all the need-to-know developments in landlord compliance plus some of the curveballs that are coming up

GROUP GOINGS-ON

The good, the bad, the ugly (like seriously!) from January’s most popular posts on the Buy To Let Property Group on Facebook

ONE TO WATCH

From arriving in this country and jobbing as a day-labourer to building an international portfolio this investor is making major moves

16

18

SUCCESS STORY

CONVEYANCING - WHAT’S TAKING SO LONG?

We go behind-the-scenes with the BTL Group’s preferred solicitor to find out

LET’S GET DOWN, LET’S DOWN TO BUSINESS

Writer Alex Daley looks at ways you can turn you property side-hustle into a fullscale life-changing business that runs with or without you

29 CASE STUDY – TRUSS-ENOMICS FLAT REFURB

15-years and a disastrous mini-budget couldn’t stop this mum-of-two investor

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39

41

ANALYSIS - THE BUILD-TO-RENT THREAT

Should we be worried about the big boys muscling in on our patch?

COLUMN: AN INTRO TO BTL INSURANCE

Falcon Insurance lay out the basics so you can get the best deal on first-time cover

COLUMN: TAX TIPS TO HELP YOU GET AHEAD

Some quick and handy hints to maximise the benefits before the tax year ends

42 THE LIST

Our unapologetically subjective list of useful resources and folk to follow

45 THE RANT - FINAL WORDS FROM WES

Wes De Leur gets something off his chest - Evictions are inevitable, be ready!

USEFUL LINKS

JULIAN@ONTHEHOUSEMAG.CO.UK

BUY TO LET PROPERTY GROUP

On The House magazine has made with constant care to ensure that its content is accurate on the date of publication. The views expressed in the articles reflect the author(s) opinions and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher and editor. The published material, adverts, editorials and all other content is published in a good faith. On The House magazine cannot guarantee and accepts no liability for any loss or damage of any kind caused by this website and errors and for the accuracy of claims made by the advertisers. All rights reserved and nothing can be partially or in whole be reprinted or reproduced without a written consent. On The House magazine is produced by Fired Up Media Ltd on behalf of The Buy To Let Property Group. Fired Up Media is an ICO registered company.

PROPERTY TAX

Astonia Associates are one of the country’s leading Accountancy & Tax specialists and advisors in Land and Property related strategies and techniques including:

• Rent to Rent (R2R)

• Rent to SA (Rent to Serviced Accommodation)

• Buy to Lets (BTL)

• No Money Down Strategies (NMD)

• Build to Rent (BTR)

• Build to Sell (BTS)

• Serviced Accommodation (SA)

• Lease Options (LO)

• Property Development (PD)

• Land Acquisition and New Build (NB)

• Analysis of Additional Tax on Enveloped Dwellings (ATED)

• Ad Hoc Scenarios

We have created a unique team of tax specialists that provide all Property Investment and Property Development tax and accountancy services under one roof. We are now one of the most highly regarded and frequently referred professional tax specialists in many of the popular property specific social media platforms.

Our CEO Paul Weller is also a seasoned and active property investor/developer himself.

Our operational experience allows us to offer our clients a more comprehensive service as we personally invest in of all the property strategies . Tax rules and tax laws are constantly changing and we ensure that our clients are structured tax efficiently for today and into the future.

Editor’s Letter

Welcome to the February edition of ON THE HOUSE Magazine

When I was a pup journalist fresh off my MA course and working on IT magazines, the term ‘adding value’ was bandied around in pretty much every interview I can remember. It was proudly asserted by technology providers, sales people and managing directors alike.

Then as I moved to the business desk of a national newspaper interviewees were doubling down on the term as it had become almost a buzzword for success – to add value for your customers, shareholders or online followers.

Then when I became a property investor, I still could not escape the term, as it seems every single strategy worth its salt requires you, the investor, to find a way to ‘add value’.

In fact, even with this magazine Wes De Leur and I are attempting to add value to the Buy To Let Property Group – I mean there aren’t many Facebook groups with their own monthly magazine!

Now, there’s sometimes the perception that free equals low value. Well, I can confidently say, that when it comes to this magazine, even though it is literally ON THE HOUSE, that is absolutely not the case.

For instance, if your strategy involves any kind of renovation, this issue’s cover feature and interview with renowned refurbishment expert Martin Rapley (p23) is seriously packed with value that could save you hundreds if not thousands in missteps and mistakes and give you a blueprint for the next step on your renovation journey.

Writer Alex Daley delivers a solid dose of value for those looking to evolve their property investment efforts into a property business with his exploration of ways to scale up on p18, while columnists Ramsay & White reveal techniques (p40) to help you ensure your portfolio is bulletproof during the current uncertain times.

Plus, there’s lots more, like our brand-new Beginner’s Corner (p38) – a serialised focus in every issue from now on into one topic to help you get started in the property game with the right mindset, knowledge and guidance to succeed.

See

- value, value, value!

And, as always, I value your feedback, so if there is anything you want to suggest, comment on or just to start a conversation, please do send me an email, julian@onthehousemag.co.uk

With many thanks to our Issue 4 Sponsor

Julian PlettsEDITOR

IN CASE YOU MISSED

REGULATORY ROUND-UP

There is so much compliance to being a landlord nowadays, so here is our regulatory round-up - the latest main developments that you need to be aware of along with the best-known timetables for other proposed changes and new regulations.

EVICTION BAN EXTENDED, NEW RENT CAP – SCOTLAND

The Emergency legislation brought forward in Scotland under the Cost of Living (Tenant Protection) Bill 2022 to freeze rents and eviction ban until March 21st, 2023 became an act on October 27th. In recent weeks the protections for tenants have been extended including (subject to parliamentary approval) from April 1st 2023 rent rises will be capped to 3%. Read the rest here.

The measures are now “intended to be extended to September 30th” with the option for them to be extended for a further six-month period.

WELSH RENTAL OVERHAUL NOW IN EFFECT

The Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016 came into effect on December 1st. The grace period for compliance with the new rules comes to an end on May 31st.

HOLIDAY LET BUSINESS RATES

From April, new eligibility rules for business rates will apply to self-catering properties in England and Wales will come into force. If your property does not match the new criteria you will be eligible for paying Council Tax.

DEADLINE FOR SCOTTISH SHORT-TERM LET LICENSES

April 1st is the deadline for existing landlords of properties in Scotland to apply for short-term let licenses. From October 2022 it has been mandatory for all new landlords renting out properties on a short-term basis in Scotland to apply for the licenses.

MAKING TAX DIGITAL

Previously coming into effect in April 2024 has now been kicked back down the road for landlords until 2026. Making Tax Digital will require landlords earning more than £10,000 to use MTD-compatible software to keep records and make four quarterly submissions and a final one to HMRC a year.

DAMP AND MOULD REGULATION FAST-TRACKED?

Proposed legislation in memory of a toddler who died in social housing after being exposed to serious and untreated mould and damp is going to be “tabled as soon as possible” according to reports quoting Housing minister Felicity Buchan. “The proposed law aims to make sure that landlords respond to complaints about damp and mould quickly and with the proper regard to risk to health,” Buchan told MPs in the House of Commons, adding they are working proposals “as soon as possible”.

NEEDTOKNOWSCALE

THE RENTER’S REFORM BILL

The reappointed Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Michael Gove late last year reaffirmed his commitment to The Renter’s Reform Bill this year. The bill outlines wide ranging changes to the private rental sector across England including the end of Section 21 evictions and the creation of a landlord register. The bill is making its way through parliament and is expected to become law by Spring 2024, but it could be sooner.

EPC CHANGES

Under proposals from the government all new tenancies will require an energy performance rating of C or above and existing tenancies from 2028.

REGISTRATION SCHEME FOR SHORT-TERM HOLIDAY LETS

In December Prime Minister Rishi Sunak confirmed during PMQs that the government is committed to introducing a registration scheme for short-term holiday lets.

His passion for property led him to specialise in brokering finance for property investors and it is this 20 + years brokering background that makes his fully-fledged, well established training business, unique in that it is designed to educate investors to play that bigger game in property - but with their current resources.

Kevin Wright has been described as ‘outrageously positive’ – partly

approach to property finance, but in 2016 he applied his positive strategies and took just two months to beat cancer.

Enough said.

Buy to Let Group founder Wes got an unsurprising response to this question with all commenters at the time of writing seeing it as just another tax on landlords.

Bradley Griffin sought the group’s hivemind advice on whether a two to three-bed conversion was possible or indeed advisable on this property. Open to any answer, he got a variety from quick sketches, to suggestions to move the bathroom downstairs, or to just not to bother.

Cheers for this Jay. Made us laugh but the truth of the matter is you need a thick skin in this game.

The Buy to Let Property group is one of the busiest, most vibrant and supportive places for property investors on Facebook. On any given month there are thousands of joining requests, almost a thousand posts and hundreds of thousands of post views. Here are some of the most popular ones that got you talking at the start of 2023.

Charlie got many thinking about life insurance to cover our BTL mortgages ‘in the event of’ with this post. We don’t think you are stingy Charlie – just cost conscious. Still piece of mind is always worth it as this one broker pointed out.

Always a great question Dan! Here are some of the answers too to help people out and get people thinking:

“Paying down debt”

“Growing”

“Changing to repayment, developing one of them and pulling some equity out of one to buy a property abroad.”

“Switching to interest only whilst rates are high then will switch back to repayments when/if they come down again.

Still actively buying now”

“Buying more & buying more smarter , using a SPV ltd company rather than personal name & putting rents up.

So much demand for rentals it’s untrue . 8 x applicants in 3 hrs for one property , madness.

Time to make money in a recession - love it!”

“Keeping on top of rent reviews”

“Leased some of my properties to a housing provider for guaranteed return without the need to worry about voids, arrears and repairs.”

Marek asked the question so many of us would love to know the answer to for sure. However, without a Grays Sports Almanac type level of insider knowledge (Back to the Future reference for you there) we’re never going to be sure. Almost 50 group members had something to say about it though.

Regular poster Rob drew our attention to this listing on RightMove that an overenthusiastic agent might describe as ‘in need of a little TLC’. It would take a brave investor to take on these properties – The street view can best be described as an after scape from ‘The Purge’ movies! There was talk of clubbing together to reinvigorate this notorious estate, although that would require local authorities to work with landlords.

As we all got back to business at the start of the year ON THE HOUSE Magazine editor Julian wanted to gauge where everyone’s heads where at when it comes to purchases this year. Seems on balance though we are still an optimistic bunch and looking for deals that stack. It’s not too late to have your say.

Oh Danny Boy! We feel for you as that is a SHOCKING job! Congrats on the most popular post of the month though. And well done for getting stuck in and fixing it yourself.

ONE TO WATCH: ALEX HOBINCU

Native Romanian and RoundTable Mastermind Group member Alex

Spotting opportunities and grasping them is at the heart of what has given Alex Hobincu his success in property.

Having moved to the UK 14 years ago Alex tells us how he made his start as a labourer. It was quite the leap leaving Romania with only one friend in the UK but it seems to have paid off! ON THE HOUSE Magazine sat down with Alex to discuss his property journey to date and what the future might hold for him.

LAYING THE FOUNDATIONS

“I started as a labourer in a UK construction firm, I went through the ranks, saved money and started investing it in Romania during the recession, buying my first property in 2012. I bought about 50% under the asking price,” explains Hobincu.

It was a cash deal which, as the property market was still trying to recover, was seemingly perfectly timed to pick up a bargain. It sounds like

the classic case of a motivated seller and a buyer not having to rely on a mortgage.

“That was my first taste of real estate, my first negotiation.” A taste that clearly lingered for Hobincu.

However, he decided to train his focus on the UK market.

“I bought my first property in the UK in Romford, it was a one-bed house, £150,000 house with two massive trees right in front of it. The seller couldn’t sell it but I did some shopping around and managed to find an insurance company that would insure it. The asking price was £200,000 but I got it for £150,000 after a few of his sales had fallen through. I fully redid the property, gutted it, new glazing, took the trees down, everything I could do to maximise the profit. Complete revamp. One year later I got it revalued at £220,000 and I was able to release about £45,000, added some savings to that and bought another property down in Kent.”

Hobincu has developed strategies that work both at home and away. His latest is project is certainly a step up though, we found out more…

Before renovation

Some of Hobincu’s UK investments

SPOTTING OPPORTUNITIES

Alex invested in towns within Kent that he viewed as those with the potential to be commuter towns for London.

“A lot of people think some of these towns are a bit run down, but I’m looking at the transport. From Rochester, it takes about 40 minutes to central London, and you have the option to go to anywhere in London. I realised these sorts of places could potentially become commuter towns over the years.”

He is now evolving his strategy to include both investments here and at home and has scaled his ambition too.

“I’m trying to split my focus between [Romania and UK]. I recently bought a warehouse in Romania, 400 square metres sitting on about 1,000 square metres of land. I’m planning on converting that into properties of mixed usage, both commercial and residential. There will be a restaurant with flats above, next to a number of terrace houses and then parking spaces. I’m also currently looking at trying to buy the land next to the plot, about 500 square meters, to do another three houses... All connected by an access road.”

Not only is it a much bigger project than he has previously completed but it is also going to be challenging to manage from the other side of Europe. He does though, have family on the ground who are helping.

“I’m building for about €500 per square metre for a high spec finish. In the UK it would be anywhere from £1,800£3,300 for the same spec, depending on if you were selfmanaging or not.”

Splitting his focus between the two poses the obvious question, what do the returns look like for each?

“I expect between 9% and roughly 12% yield in Romania, whereas in the UK, at the moment I’m looking about 5.5-6% yield on standard BTLs [in Kent].

“Interest rates I’m looking at are around 6.5% in Romania (at the time of the interview).

“The good thing about the UK though is capital appreciation. That’s my capital appreciation machine, with less yield. Romania is the yield machine and I’m less bothered about capital appreciation.”

ADAPT AND CONQUER

Alex tells us how he was able to lessen the impact of interest rates across his portfolio - both recent changes and future changes.

“I started looking at fixing my rates that were ending in the next year or so and have been paying ERCs to lock in new rates since the beginning of 2022. It’s something I started doing based on the RoundTable Mastermind Group, where in our discussions, I could get a feel of the market sentiment, the direction it’s going… Many landlords didn’t have provisions for the situation we’re in now. They have properties that at 6% interest are starting to give them a wake-up call. They’re paying out of their pocket because their properties don’t earn enough.”

So, what do you feel the future holds for you?

“I’m going to try to reduce my investment in Romania and get the money into the UK. I’ve sold a few properties recently there and brought that over. But it’s been quite difficult using that money, the solicitors have been asking loads of questions despite it all being there and clearly legit. A few lenders haven’t accepted it. I’ve found that frustrating. I changed brokers, to the BTL Group’s preferred partners Ramsay & White who have helped.

“I’d like to add two more UK properties this year but it has to be the right deal. And complete the Romania project.”

What is the most important lesson that you have learned in your time investing in property that you would like to share with newbie property investors?

“The government are so tough on landlords now, take every advantage you can. So many landlords leave money on the table because they don’t have the right structures and advice in place. Speak with a good accountant, get that aspect handled.”

Romanian investment plot

By Alex Daley

‘What do they do and why does it take so damn long?’

If I asked you to guess who in the property ecosystem I was referring to when I asked that question I bet at least three quarters of you would say the same thing - solicitors.

Even if yours is great, the seller’s never is. It’s the property Gods punishing us for that sub-standard landlord repair you made, you know which one I’m talking about…

ON THE HOUSE Mag grabbed some time with the Buy To Let Group’s preferred partner Tim Bishop of Bonallack & Bishop Solicitors to try to figure out what actually happens during the conveyancing process, how to get the best out of your solicitor and see if they deserve the poor rep!

OTH: Let’s start with the basics, what’s the role of a solicitor?

A solicitor’s job is to make sure you buy what you want to buy… to make sure the rights you want to have are there and there are no nasties sitting there. That’s why, for example, searches happen, to check if there’s any planned development, or maybe if your neighbour’s got right of way across your garden, or whether what’s been built has planning permission… It’s an insurance policy.

We talk to property investor and solicitor Tim Bishop to try and get a better understanding of the conveyancing process in 2023

OTH: OK, so a vital role yes, but why does it take so long? However good your solicitor is, they can only go as quickly as the slowest part of the chain. All you need is one solicitor to go slowly. Whilst most are reasonably up to date, some are agonisingly slow. Conveyancing has become more complex recently too.

We’ve seen the average length of transaction change postCovid, very rough rule of thumb, pre-Covid perhaps three months, now we’re not seeing four, four and a half is more normal. Anything involving the government is horrendous at the moment, Land Registry for example, three to six months is normal. That has a knock-on effect, for those who are flipping or refinancing, it’s a real issue. There’s a way of doing it by expediting it. To expedite you need to have a good reason, sale or refinance.

(Something to factor in for those planning on following the BRRR strategy or contemplating flips.)

OTH: Why are personal guarantees so expensive?

The reason is simple, lenders want an insurance policy, they don’t want anyone turning around saying they didn’t know what they signed up to, so they’re basically getting the solicitors to guarantee you know what you’re signing up to. So if anything goes pear-shaped, you don’t have a go at them, you have a go at your solicitor. The issue there is solicitors have personal indemnity insurance and take on the risks.

OTH: How would you advise we best manage our solicitor? When should we chase, when shouldn’t we? And how can we speed things up?

Firstly, make sure your client ID is sorted out in advance, make sure you’ve got all the information they’ll need to hand in advance, if they ask you for things, get it to them as soon as possible.

As for choosing and managing them, you need to find someone you trust. Get references when deciding on a solicitor… Sometimes you need specialists, we have a specialist property team and only some of them act for investors because I know there’s a difference between investor and Mr and Mrs Jones buying 63 Bob Road. Your solicitors need to understand property investors. If you’re doing weird and wonderful strategies - lease options, purchase options, assisted sales that your average solicitor won’t have a clue about, [the wrong solicitor] can be a real pain. If you need a specialist, use a specialist.

If you feel they’re being slow and not keeping you in the loop, kick them. If you feel they’re being reasonable, try not to do it [nudge] unless you have to. If you do have a question, it’s best not to ring every time you have a thought, put a few together then give them a call. Just make sure you don’t call them on Friday afternoon! If you really want to annoy them, call them Friday afternoon.

Find someone who communicates in the style you want. If you want bullet point emails with updates, tell them that, see what they say… Treat them nicely, be polite.. Let’s be honest, solicitors are human. If they have a client you really like, you really trust and is alway nice to you, and they ask you ‘look can you do this a bit quicker this time?’ - they’ll likely make that bit of extra effort.

SOLICITING AN OPINION

So there you have it, we have a bit more of a glimpse into the wonderful (in fairness I don’t even think conveyancers would call it wonderful) world of property solicitors. We’re all still probably just as upset at the couple of hundred quid we spend on personal guarantees, albeit more understanding, we’ve confirmed our suspicions that unlike parents, solicitors have their favourites and we know when never to call them.

Do you have a strategy for coping with the current conveyancing climate?

Let us know by posting on the BTL Group or emailing the editor

julian@onthehousemag.co.uk

LET’S GET DOWN TO BUSINESS!

Are you in the business of property?

Or are you more of a part-time landlord? Alex Daley explores the difference and what mindset you need to adopt in order to scale up…

Do you treat your property business like the fully-fledged business it is?

Property is one of those things, I think likely because of the word ‘invest,’ which feels less like an actual business and more of a passive income source for many people. Which is absolutely fine, but if you’re really looking to grow and scale this income source, can you afford to have that mindset?

For me, when I sat down and looked at my goals, and how property would serve as a vehicle to achieve them, I realised I had to treat it like a business. I didn’t want it to be a ‘side hustle’. From the small things, like having a dedicated email address, including a specific property domain name, to the big things, like systemisation.

This is doubly important should you look to take on investor money (from family members to others). If there’s a lot of money on the line, you need to be investable, and that’s only ever going to happen when you have a stable, predictable business.

Bronwen Vearncombe (pictured left), Director of Property Investing Foundation and author of ‘Building Your Dream Life’ helped provide some commentary on a few ideas on the why and most importantly, the how.

Ultimately, how you build your business will depend on your goals, Vearncombe’s goals were to exit the nine-to-five corporate job, to not manage her properties, and instead to volunteer in Africa.

Are you a one-man band in property?

SYSTEMS OPERATIONAL

Systems are the lifeblood of a scalable business and property is exactly the same. Set-up and managed correctly, systems can allow more time to focus on the business and less time fighting fires. What are systems?

A system is a defined procedure or practice that is applied to a specific scenario or activity, to achieve a specific result. You’re basically creating a bunch of processes to make sure something gets done correctly and efficiently. Systems to consider:

Maintenance - Seeking permission from your tenant to give their number to contractors to arrange times for them to come around rather than you being in the middle.

Late rent - I have a pre-written chaser email for rent that’s more than three days late. You could have one for day three, seven etc.

Inspections - I have a pre-written inspection notice email Start and end of a tenancy (especially key for student HMOs) - I have a fairly extensive email, pre-written, which I know covers all the key info they need.

There are several software services to alleviate some burden. Some are free - like Lendlord (which is one I personally use and enjoy), and some, like Hammock and COHO for HMO management.

“For us, we have HMOs across two different cities, a guest house business, holiday lets, small development projects and a coaching business. It’s important to be clear about our own skillsets too because some things we love doing and are good at, are things that we don’t always want to stop doing,” adds Vearncombe.

“Asana is a web-based task management tool which helps eliminate the email mess and brings all tasks together. By getting into this we’ve been able to keep track of tasks, prioritise and delegate to others, exchange related files, keep certificates safe etc.”

“Another key system we use is LastPass - a secure way of creating and storing passwords. We can even allow access to just some to our trusted partners in a controlled way. This has given us so much more confidence and reduced risk,” Vearncombe says.

Self-managing does mean it’s harder to let go later

DELEGATE TO ACCELERATE

Delegation is the only way you’ll scale your business effectively, but not everything can be delegated.

The key here is identifying what work to delegate, when and to whom. Sometimes delegation isn’t the right thing to do, even if it can be done.

Factors to consider initially:

1. Can this be delegated?

2. Do I have the skillset to do it myself to a high quality? Do I have the time to do it myself? Is my time better spent elsewhere?

3. To whom can it be delegated? What quality of work will I receive? What timeframe can I expect? How much will it cost?

If you barely have any time, you’re likely looking at delegating full property management. If however, you self-manage and receive an email, for instance, from a tenant saying the downpipe on a single-storey part of the roof has come off and water is going down the wall, that’s something that could go either way. It may take your handyman five days to get out there and he’ll charge you £40. If you’re just around the corner, is it worth you going round after work and sorting it yourself?

If I’m nearby, and I can fix it with no real issue, I’d rather not delegate, wait days for it to get done and get an invoice. That said, my skillset is limited, and there’s no chance you’re getting me up to 2nd storey gutters. That’s money well spent to delegate! Equally, if your goal is zero involvement, you’re obviously not going out to fit or reconnect a downpipe.

The second I’m too busy with growing the business that I can’t go and do that simple fix, then I’m delegating. So the question is, is your time best spent elsewhere? As Vearncombe says ‘how much is your time worth?’. There are however, certain tasks, I just don’t think I’d want to delegate (call me a control freak) - property inspections being one that comes to mind.

Vearncombe’s strategy was to delegate management right from the start.

“Unless managing properties is your dream job and you continue to absolutely love being ‘in the business’ then there is no point getting great returns. Investing in property can be a means to an end - for example, being able to leave a corporate job, being able to have time back to spend with loved ones or volunteer for that organisation you’re passionate about,” she says.

“If investing gives you cashflow (and long-term capital growth too) it does need to be managed well, otherwise that cashflow might be at risk. Even if you feel you are essential in the business, I think you might be surprised that there are others out there with many more years of experience. Of course, you need to pay them, but how much is your time worth? If you add up all the hassles, time taken and inconvenience of managing, how much is it worth to you to offload that element?”

KNOW THY-SELF-MANAGE

If your plan is to have an agent manage your property, many suggest a bit of time spent managing the property yourself and learning what needs to be done, so you can know whether the agents are doing a good job when they take over. At the end of the day, if they don’t do a good job, it’s you that it’ll hurt.

Vearncombe isn’t as keen on that idea: “It depends on what your strategy is. Sometimes it can be useful but it does mean it’s harder to let go later because you have a particular way of doing things. You’ve also got used to the income without fees to an ‘agent’. [We’ve changed] our agents from ‘high st’ to other property investor experts who are local and manage their own properties too. They truly know the issues and are much more focused on tenant management in my experience.”

DON’T RELEGATE REGULATION KNOW-HOW

Ultimately, as a property business owner, you need to understand the regulations around letting properties. Ignorance of the law is no excuse, as they say. And this is the case even if you have your property managed.

“It’s a minefield if you don’t keep informed or have others to support you. Starting out I learnt from the Property Investors Network (PIN) locally and the NRLA National Residential Landlords Association - which have a great website and good training courses too,” says Vearncombe. “I’m a good networker and have a number of people I stay in touch with, my professional experts, of course, which led to my ‘expert panel’ who gets together regularly. We even hold a live Q&A online.”

MAKING THE SHIFT

Ultimately, as you grow your portfolio, there will come a time when your day is taken up almost solely working in the business that you have no time to work on it. If you’re self-managing, that’s you doing tenant viewings, arranging fixes, and responding to a mountain of messages. That’s where growth can stall and you may need to be able to step back. If that means bringing in part-time or full-time help to manage aspects, then that’s what needs to be done.

There are options - it could be hiring a good virtual assistant (VA), it could be bringing on a property manager in-house to handle all of the management. Whatever it is, the objective is to get you out of the trenches, to stop fighting fires (even if it feels productive) and to look at strategy and big decisions. In our world, that’s likely new property acquisition, attracting and bringing on new investors and solving crucial issues that require you and you alone to fix.

Even if you feel you are essential in the business, I think you might be surprised

It’s a minefield if youkeepdon’t informed

The ability to improve, reinvent or breathe new life into the bricks and mortar of a property is such a key part of so many strategies. So ON THE HOUSE Magazine editor Julian Pletts consulted Martin Rapley – to many the foremost expert on the subject – to get a step-by-step blueprint for refurbishment and renovation success

Over the last few years, as the market has been climbing, the BRRR strategy has been buzzier than a beehive in early summer. But really, Buy Refurb Refinance Rent (or sell) and Repeat is nothing new. It was previously known as momentum investing and before that, well, it was most likely just known as adding value. And that really in a nutshell is the key to success in many property strategies – adding, manufacturing or forcing an increase in the value of the underlying asset.

In fact, that ability to add value is what attracted many of us to property in the first place. It’s pretty difficult to buy a share in ITV and then improve the quality of its programming. What’s more, in the vast majority of cases (except for adding paper value by gaining planning permission) adding value comes down to some form of renovation, refurbishment or redevelopment.

Unless you are buying a property that just needs the odd lick of paint and new carpets you will have to get comfortable with refurbishment – which includes everything from properly working out the costs and writing a schedule of works or hiring and managing tradespeople through to value engineering and knowing when to outsource.

For first-time investors or those who are looking to move from simple buy-to-lets to renovation strategies, it can be a seriously intimidating prospect. Get it wrong and – as we will see – the potential downsides can be pretty catastrophic.

To help you avoid that and start you down the right path we sought the expert advice of Martin Rapley of Refurbishment Mastery and refurbishment mentor and trainer, who has been interested in property since jobbing at his uncle’s building company in his school summer holidays.

Rapley then started in the industry as a trainee quantity surveyor after school, followed by working as a contract estimator and contract manager before switching to project management in 2000. He then set up a construction consultancy in 2012 and began his own property investment journey. Despite having his vast and varied construction experience – when it comes to starting his investment journey he was humble enough to know there was still a lot he did not know.

In fact, being humble to know you don’t know everything, and a willingness to ask important questions, are clear themes throughout our interview with Rapley.

“If you are blagging and not really doing things efficiently on the smaller projects and you carry on those bad methods all the way through to bigger projects, suddenly it hurts,” he warns.

For instance, Martin readily admits that deal-finding is not his area of expertise and says he is perfectly able to find deals that work on RightMove. His focus and strength are process-oriented tasks and this comes into its own when managing refurbishment projects, large and small.

If done correctly refurbishment can be the key to rapid portfolio building and creating profitable property projects which will ultimately lead you to financial independence.

BIGGEST STUMBLING BLOCK

Whether you find your renovation project on the open market, off-market or the black market – appraising deals is going to be something that you have to get comfortable with. This can be the first and major stumbling block for many an investor.

“The first thing they stumble into is they don’t appraise the deal well enough in the first place. So, they don’t understand what they’re buying, what the cost is to convert, refurbish - whatever they’re doing,” warns Rapley.

“Unfortunately, I talk to a lot of people who have probably bought the wrong property or paid too much for the property because they didn’t really understand what they were doing with it going forward.”

(For those new to property investment – start with our Beginner’s Corner series which can be found here and will include a new step for you to master in each issue of ON THE HOUSE Magazine)

Frustratingly, though for first-time renovators it can be a bit of a chicken and egg scenario – ‘How do I know how much it costs to renovate a property until I have renovated a property?’

“What I teach is to break the project down into manageable, understandable components,” explains Rapley, who works with newbie renovators to guide them through the process.

“If we’re talking about, let’s say, converting a threebedroom house into a five-bedroom HMO, I’m talking to them about the cost of rewiring that property, the cost of redoing the central heating system, the cost of the extension on the back, the cost of the new kitchen. So, from that, they’ve now got benchmarks… I’m cautious about doing any refurbishment budgets on a price per square metre because there are so many variables in what a refurbishment is.”

This still leaves the question open about how to be able to figure these out in the first place. Well, obviously, Rapley would encourage you to sign up for his masterclass which you can do here. But he also gives some insight into how he squared that circle when he started out investing - heading to networking events and open houses and asking questions, lots and lots of questions.

“When anyone at a networking meeting ever stands up and says, ‘I’ve just finished a property. I’ve got an open house on Saturday afternoon.’ I’d always say, particularly for anyone new or inexperienced, get yourself around there, see what they’ve done. Look up what they bought it for, consider how they converted it, what the numbers were. Most property investors will share all that knowledge,” says Rapley. “That’s how I learned in the first place. I knew construction, but I didn’t know anything about HMOs. I didn’t know what the inside of an HMO looked like.”

You could also consider joining a mastermind group with more experienced investors who can help you thrash out the details of your deals – such as the RoundTable Mastermind run by the Buy to Let Property Group’s founder Wes De Leur (Find out more here).

Largely, most builders are good, but there are the wrong builders for you

CHECK, CHECK AND CHECKLIST

Then when you start to feel confident you can price things up a little better you will need to build your ability to spot issues at viewings –and you will need to do a lot of those too.

Martin says don’t be afraid to take a checklist along with you to viewings to note the issues that are going to cost money to rectify along with wielding your mobile phone for pictures and video referencing later. When you do lots of viewings they tend to blur into one so you will thank yourself later for this.

“The key thing is the issues you’re looking for are beyond the horrible carpet and wallpaper. We can change the carpet, we can change wallpaper. We’re almost certainly going to put in a new kitchen. So, and it doesn’t matter that the toilet is bright pink because we’re going to put a new one in. What we’re looking at is the structure. What is holding this building up? Are there some structural cracks?

“Does it look like the ceiling’s about to fall down? Are the floors all irregular? Are the electrics old-fashioned rewireable fuses?”

Rapley’s ‘Refurbishment Handbook’ offers up a checklist with 130 possible observations you can make at viewings ranging from the state of door frames and windows through to the wiring and the levels of the floors.

This sort of eye for detail can take time to develop and come with practice if it is not something you are good at or used to. So, don’t be afraid to take someone who is, advises Rapley.

ON THE HOUSE editor, Julian Pletts, learned early on in his investing career that he loves the people side of property like talking to vendors and negotiating deals but that it was his wife’s eye for detail that could potentially spot flaws in properties at viewings and help with the vital elements of the deal appraisal.

SLOWLY DOES IT

Once you are comfortable with appraising deals and have secured a solid renovation project you’ll need to write a specification of the work that is required which can be done by referring back to your notes and hopefully a thorough inspection of the property after you have the keys (or even before if the vendor allows).

At this point Martin’s advice is clear and concise: slow down!

“You’ve probably seen it on social media, you know, you see people with the keys on a Friday and they’re saying the builder starts on Monday. That is possible. I have had projects where you can pick the keys up on Friday and get the builder in on Monday, but that is really hard because often yeah, you can’t get builders and architects and people around there to look at a property until you actually own it. And I meet a lot of people that say ‘Well, I’ve just put the builder in there, I’ve got him started, and I’ll tell him what he’s going to do and he gets going.’ That is just a license for the builder to print money.”

“I think slowing down [is important]. If you slow down two weeks upfront, you will definitely gain four, six weeks at the back,” advises Rapley.

This lead-in time needs to be factored in as part of the bridging finance costs in the appraisal. Also, when it comes to your availability you have to be realistic – if you are working full time you are going to struggle to be a full-time project manager.

“If you know, you can’t manage the project without a project manager, then when you are appraising the deal before you even buy it, factor in a line item for a project manager to come and manage it for you,” he says.

When writing a specification – a step Rapley says you ignore at your peril – you can either choose to do it room by room, trade by trade or a hybrid mix of both. Once you have a detailed appraisal and fully fleshed it out with all your requirements for the renovation, it’s time to look for tradespeople.

BUILDING TRUST

“A lot of people say to me, how do I find good builders? Largely, most builders are good, but there are the wrong builders for you. A wrong builder is a builder who perhaps only does new builds and you’ve got them in to do an extension. Or the builder who is too big for your small project or it’s just one guy and his mate and the project’s far too big for him and he’ll still be here next year finishing it off because it’s just the two of them and they can’t do it any faster.”

Again, this is not a process to be rushed but do it properly and you will start to have trades you can add to your list for future projects. “A lot of property investors will only have spoken to two builders and one of them has now got too busy and can’t do the job and they don’t like the other one. Whereas, I teach, you should have a long list of builders, 10 to 12 builders, and whittle that down to six or seven that you get prices from. So, that if the one that you want to use suddenly can’t do it, you’ve got more that you can talk to without being up against it.”

With a solid specification of the work that can be shared with each builder, they will all be quoting from the same information so you can easily compare quotes, of which, Rapley advises obtaining at least three from your shortlist.

MATERIAL DISADVANTAGE

One major hurdle that Rapley has seen in recent years is the fluctuating costs of materials and labour.

“The biggest challenge has been how volatile [materials prices] have been. I’ve been seeing builders pricing things and saying, well, you know, I’ve priced it this week, but now you want me to buy it 12 weeks later on, it’s just skyrocketed. And so, we’ve had builders come back talking to us about, you know, how we can work with that. Whilst everyone sets out to have lump sum fixed prices for their works, you know, with a builder that’s given a client a lump sum fixed price, if they genuinely can’t make it work for that price, we’ve had to get around the table, negotiate and really work out how can we make it work?

He recalls the example of one client who was carrying out a renovation project for £750,000 and was alarmed when his builder came back and he couldn’t honour the quote, saying to Rapley - ‘He’s trying to rip me off!’ But after the trio sat down to look at the challenges the builder faced the difference turned out to be just £3,500 – hardly a dealbreaker on a project that size and certainly not worth going through the whole tender process again.

Rapley goes into much greater detail about appointing builders, setting key timelines and contracts as well building rapport with them in The Refurbishment Handbook – all of which are beyond the scope of this article, but he does advise that new investors should start with small projects and work their way up.

He warns of “inexperienced property investors that have sometimes, sadly, been on a training course at the weekend, are suddenly out on Monday buying a half million-pound complex schemes with little or no experience and not knowing who to turn to and muddling their way through it, and therefore continually finding themselves out of their depth.”

“If you start off with relatively small projects, working with relatively small builders, doing relatively straightforward projects, you will ease yourself into it and so that by the time you come to the bigger schemes that are more complex, have more challenges, you’ve cut your teeth on relatively straightforward things. On every one of those smaller projects, you’ll learn some stuff and then you’ll go on to the next one. You’ll learn some more.”

REMAIN HUMBLE

If you are diving into renovations for the first time Martin returns to the perspective of being humble enough to know there is likely to be a lot you don’t know.

“One of the biggest mistakes I see them making is not talking to, not asking questions and not talking to their builders, their tradesmen, even their consultants and not asking questions and drilling down with the builder. They will say to me on the phone: ‘The builder sent me this and said it was ten grand more.’ Well, did you ask where ten grand came from? How did they build it up? What’s led to it?” Ignorance or lack of knowledge can be a plus – you can ask frank questions says Rapley.

“I think one advantage that some property investors have got is that they don’t know. They genuinely don’t. So, whilst I can ask strategic questions to try and tease out the right answers, I say to some of my clients, look, phone the builder and say. ‘Look, where did this price come from? I don’t understand where it came from. I expected to do this for, you know, this element of the work for £5,000 and you’re saying it’s £10,000. Help me understand why I’ve got it wrong.’ I can’t have that conversation because it’s like, well Martin, you should know. You should know it costs £10,000 to do this because you’re an expert. Property investors can say, look, okay, I’ve got it wrong, but help me understand, you know, help me make sure I don’t get it wrong again.”

As with any relationship, and Rapley is very clear working with a

relationship, communication and compromise are vital. By asking questions and being open and honest about what you don’t know, once you have appointed a builder you will feel more confident to put together an informed and detailed schedule of work (if you are project managing yourself).

DO DEAL DEBRIEFS

So, you’ve followed Rapley’s advice, found a small deal to cut your teeth on, created a useful specification of the work, appointed a builder and worked through the project together maintaining that working relationship – once the dust has settled and the tenants installed – it is time to do a project debrief.

“When I get to the end of the project, I want to know where I went wrong. And largely that is financial issues. You know, if I’ve spent more than I was intending to spend, why was it? You can’t get the money back, but you can learn and take that forward to the next one.”

ENGINEER EXTRA VALUE

As a result of your debrief you may well conclude that you need to keep a tighter reign on costs in future projects. One way to do this is value engineering.

“Value engineering is a process of working with your team which could be an architect, structural engineer, other consultants and a builder to find a more economical way of delivering the same product or this same project,” explains Rapley.

It helps if you already have enough rapport with your builder to be able to have these conversations.

So you might say: “Mr Builder, we’ve specified this product. Are you

aware of a cheaper product that’s perhaps unbranded that does the same job? We do that all of the time in our everyday lives. For instance, we might say, right, I need a new vacuum cleaner. There’s the Vax. So, and if someone said, go out and buy me a Vax, you know, you’re going to spend more than if you go down to Argos and buy something that hasn’t got the label

“Value engineering is something that, for the inexperienced, is not natural and will take longer to get into. I guide my mentees into it slowly,” adds Rapley.

“Door handles, for instance, that when the [end user] has got to open a door, if the door feels chunky and the handle, feels chunky and heavy, then that feels like quality. We know most people go into a kitchen, they’ll open the doors and the drawers, if they’ve all got soft closers on that feels like quality. What a lot of them aren’t considering is the quality of the vinyl on the floor because they’re not looking down and considering whether the vinyl is two-millimetrethick or three millimetres?”

It is a balance that comes with experience and sometimes architects or consultants will specify higher-end products than are strictly needed to achieve the same result. At the same time, you want to be careful not to erode the perceived value of the property at the finished stage just to keep costs as low as possible.

THERE’S NO BETTER TIME

So, if you heed Martin Rapley’s hard-won words of wisdom and take it slow, start on small projects and build up, appraise carefully and write a detailed specification and then schedule of work, plus have quality and open conversations with your trades while building rapport, you will be well on your

Furthermore, now could well be a great time to start looking for great opportunities to add value and see a higher return on your property investments.

“I think the market at the moment is so exciting because we are seeing properties not selling. We’re seeing motivation coming back into the market. We’re seeing prices drop. We are seeing property investors running for the hills. And so, you know, we are running for the valleys, as it were.” As Wes always says – happy investing all.

ME £50,000 OF VALUE IN EACH HOUSE!’

“I was set this project by a developer I was working with seven or eight years ago now. He got planning permission for two, two- and three-bedroom houses that were big three-bedroom houses and he would only really just break even. He said to me; ‘We’re going build them out but, you’ve got to find a way to add £50,000 onto the value of each house. Do some research and come back to me with some ideas.’ So we sat down, I worked with the architect, I worked with an interior designer.”

“We took some advice. The first thing is we reconfigured the walls and created a little study. So now we’ve added some value with the study. Then we did some research on underfloor central heating system and realised that actually that lifted the value, but it also increased the cost. So, as we’d increased the cost we had to be sure the value would come up a bit more. We put in some nicer glazed screens. We spent a bit more money on the garden and we ended up spending about £20,000 extra per property. But the belief was we were going to add on £70,000 - the net increase was about £50,000. He said, ‘Okay, well let’s get on with it and try it and see what happens because this is good learning for the future.’ The problem was, the property market went on a real boom and he sold these properties for about £150,000 more in the end, so we never got to the end of the exercise to see if what we’d done really added on the value that we thought it would ‘cause the market just took off anyway.”

“It was those things that we could do that lifted our property from what was largely run-of-the-mill threebedroom semis. Yeah. To something that was just a bit grander than a three-bedroom semi that, you know, as a result [attracted] the next demographic up.”

THE GOOD AND THE BAD (THAT GOT REALLY UGLY!)

Martin Rapley recaps a true win as well as a woeful tale to learn from:

“There was another fellow who rang me. He said. ‘Can I pay for two hours of your time to go through my contractor’s quote?’ This wasn’t a refurb actually, this was to build two houses in an expensive part of London… We had a zoom call, we went through the whole schedule of works from top to bottom, including all of the contractors’ prices. And what came to light was the architects probably over-specified some things that weren’t really necessary. The architect had made some assumptions on things that weren’t right for my client and as a result, I gave my client a large number of places where I felt he could make some savings. That’s a prime example of value engineering that we were talking about… I didn’t follow up for a while until I received a video testimonial from him about three months later telling me that that exercise had saved him £120,000 and he’d just paid me for two hours of my time to get that back.”

“There was a case study of two very inexperienced property investors who came to me to do an appraisal, a financial appraisal. The deal just really didn’t stack. Still, they decided to buy it. They fiddled the numbers to fight to prove to the finance company that it worked. It took a year to get planning permission on an 18-month bridge. They didn’t have any cash to pay their consultant, so they ran out of bridging time. The bridger then pulled the loan and they had to sell the deal in an auction, and they managed to lose £850,000. Now, there was an awful lot more story in there, but it all started from the fact that it wasn’t really a deal in the first place. These were amateur investors that jumped straight in with a really big project. I don’t want people to do that… it was just a disaster. So that’s, that’s the worst case.”

‘YOU’VE GOT TO FIND

TRUSS-ENOMICS ONE BED FLAT RENOVATION

It’s 15 years since Sabreena Davis invested in her first buyto-let. Now after embarking on a successful career as an architectural designer and having two children, she has gotten back in the game – with a little nudge from her partner and no help whatsoever from former Prime Minister Liz Truss!

OTH: So… thanks for talking to us on your lunch break from the day job. Tell us a bit about yourself and your property investing journey so far?

So, basically about, I’d say about 15 years ago or so, I brought like a really small three-bed terrace house for buy-to-let purposes in Basford with the view to buying more. But obviously, work happened and life happened, had my children and needed to focus on the nine to five. So fast forward, how many years later it is now, and my partner now, who is also an investor - he sort of got a bit fed up with me saying ‘I wanna do this’ and watch stuff on YouTube and say ‘This

strategy would work or that strategy would work.’ He just got really fed up of hearing me and he just was like, right, Sabreena, here you go, here’s some money. He’s a bit of an entrepreneur himself. He’s got a couple of properties himself, he’s got a quite a big portfolio - 11 properties in his portfolio - so he’s got a bit there and he is also a car trader as well. From there I went to a few networking events, I went to the Ste Hamilton one met so many like-minded people and just got motivated to start! I then wrote a plan and started. Went on a few viewings and bought the flat in Wollaton, which had been sold three times but fell through each time.

OTH: Excellent. What do you do for a day job?

I’m an architectural designer. I’ve got about 20 years’ experience in construction doing that.

OTH: A very useful day job for an aspiring property investor for sure, but was there still a mindset shift you think you needed to undergo?

As said, going to quite a lot of these networking events and also watching a lot of people on YouTube. And when I say YouTube, it’s not just the bigger YouTube [property influencers], it’s also the smaller YouTubers, the people who are starting out or wanting to start out. So, it’s a case of using all the project management and the decision-making and the problem-solving stuff that you get from your day job and sort of applying that to your own thing as well. Because obviously in my day job, all those things are always tied up in red tape.

Also, as I said, my partner has experience in property and he’s always doing projects at work and things like that and doing building work and he know he’s got a really good relationship with the builder that we use, so I’ve always known the teams and the tradesmen that could use to do that, but it was trying to get the processes in place from work and merging the two together.

OTH: So, tell us about this property, why was it a good prospect to get you started again?

What I did was I sort of sat down and I’ve got a five-year plan in place and that’s broken down into the next 12 months, my shortterm goals, my medium term goals, which would be three years from now. So, I’ve broken all those down and then from that I’ve devised - looking around the area - what I want from a property. I’ve got my three key criteria, my property profile so to speak, so I’ve looked at that and then this property fits into two of those criteria.

OTH: Interesting, what criteria did you arrive at?

Basically, for one, it’s something that I can add value to - a property that really needed a nice refurbishment. And two, it worked out as a good ROI, at least £300 profit per calendar month. So it ticks pretty much two out of the three of my criteria.

It’s a one-bedroom flat in a good area for Nottingham and it’ll be easy to let and low maintenance. It’s low bills, energy-wise is very

cheap. I thought it’s going to be very attractive to continually let on a long-term basis moving forward. So that was a major part to play as well.

OTH: Okay. It meets two out of three of your criteria. So, what was the third and why doesn’t it meet it?

The other criteria that I have moving forward is if there’s the possibility of splitting the property. So either if you have the possibility to create two flats or there’s a residential and a commercial bit, but you can convert then to a residential as well, so you can get two forms of income from it.

OTH: Gotcha. So how did you finance the deal?

I went to a mortgage broker, I use Castlegate Financial, the team are really good there. My partner gifted me the deposit and we’ve gone for a bridge to let purely because it was not livable when we brought it so mortgage lenders wouldn’t do a buy-to-let on it.

OTH: Were there any challenges during the conveyancing process?

The main thing for me was the type of lending that I went on and also because I was purchasing within a company basis as wellthose things slowed the conveyancing process down a bit. And obviously because it’s a two-stage, it’s the bridge-to-let, to me it’s almost like two mortgages rolled into one. The hard bit was to get the completion on the bridge, the bridge loan, first of all, which everyone always says it’s quick and it’s the easy bit, but to me it seemed like a long process. It was just trying to [push it] through with the solicitors. With it be my first one since the last one that I’d done [15 years ago], I remember that one being a lot easier and a lot smoother to go through. However, because I was purchasing through a company as well, there was other things like you’ve got to get your director’s loan drafted up for the deposit. It was just trying to get those legalities sort of signed and done. I’m coming from, even though I’m in the industry, that’s from a drawing and a creative background - I’m not a legal head. I don’t understand all of that. It was a big learning curve trying to understand what I needed to do and which forms needed to be filled in.

BEFORE AFTER

OTH: Was the timing effected by any external factors too? Yeah, it was towards the back end of last year, basically. We actually got really good rates [on the bridge-to-let]. So then while it was going through the actual completion phase for the first part of the bridge-to-let, it got delayed and we basically went through completion while the whole Liz Truss minibudget thing happened and then all the rates skyrocketed. That added to the time pressures as well. It was just really frantic to get it and push it and get the project done so that we could then go onto the buy-to-let product and release the funds and take advantage of those really, really good rates.

OTH: So, what did you do to ensure that you got it done in that timeframe?

We had a set programme, a set sort of scope of works of what we needed to do but because the completion date shifted, some of the tradesmen then got booked up. Luckily, because we worked with the tradesmen [Sabreena’s partner] Jason has always worked with we’ve got quite a good relationship with them, we could rejig stuff so that it fitted within the dates and programme that we needed. It was quite stressful. It was problem-solving on a daily basis, trying to work around everyone and get people to still come in. I was really pestering every morning, being a bit of a pain.

OTH: Talk us through the refurb…

The flat needed a full refurb. The person who owned it before was an elderly man who unfortunately passed away. He was a heavy smoker, so everything was not even yellow, it was orange and covered in sticky nicotine build up and residue. The windows were orange, anything white was orange, the carpets were embedded with smoke and dirt. The kitchen and lounge were particularly bad. Plus, the fittings and decor hadn’t been changed since the 80’s!

So, we started with the strip out so we could see what we were working with. Then we got the heating redone and channeled into the wall as the old pipework needed to be ripped out, plus we needed to get a new boiler installed. The flat needed a full rewire, new kitchen and bathroom suite, new doors. Of course, it needed a new carpet, spot repairing of the walls, repainting and we laid new matching wet spaces vinyl in the kitchen and bathroom. The works!

OTH: Any challenges or unexpected roadblocks?

Tradesmen getting booked up due to delays from completion (mentioned earlier) meaning that we had to create workarounds and do things unconventionally to get the project done – such as the floors – our plumber (who is able to other trade work too) laid the floor earlier than planned. Also, the doors - I ordered the wrong sizes in a hurry!

OTH: What key learning points have you taken from your experience with this project?

Keep on at the solicitors, literally get on them on a daily basis to push that through and not be so naive to think that you’ve called them one day and they’re going to get on and do it. Just basically be the loudest person shouting at them that day to get things done…

I do feel like the solicitors I used, I think, it worked out that they seemed to have the end of the day slot for dealing with my case because it seemed like at half past five they’d be like, oh, ‘Can you fill this form out?’ And being half past five and I couldn’t phone them to say ‘Can you explain exactly what I need to put where?’ because it was all legal jargon to me.

Main thing for me was it was small project to learn from – I learned a lot about problem-solving, which I will take to the next project. Overall, I’m happy with it as it is a great re-start and addition to the portfolio – feel it would be easy to rent.

OTH: That’s great and best of luck with the next one. Where can people follow you on that journey?

My handle on YouTube is @sapphirepropertyinvestments. I’ve also got the Instagram @sapphire_designs_ as well and the same on TikTok as well.

Purchase price £80K Fees and Legal £5,000 (inc. stamp duty)

Renovation estimate £8,000

Estimated ARV £95,000

Rental amount £750 (Monthly)

Actual ARV £110,000

Net cashflow £300 (Monthly)

Renovation actual £10,000 ROI 7.2%

SHOULD I BE WORRIED?

By Alex

It seems every month a new big player announces a move into the Build To Rent (BTR) space. In fact, when you sit down and look at who wants a part in the UK property market, we’re talking about some serious names.

But how worried should we, as smaller landlords and property businesses, be?

We took a look at what’s happening and sought advice from Stephen Riley from RM investments (pictured above, Instagram @r.m.homes) to help answer that question and provide commentary throughout, in particular on how we can compete. Stephen’s background is starting, growing and selling estate agencies alongside his property business. With properties as far and wide as Newcastle, London and Wales, he is well-placed to gauge the threat from BTR.

FIRSTLY, WHAT IS BUILD TO RENT?

As the name suggests, BTR properties are properties built specifically with the intention of being rented out, unlike your classic two-bed terrace house built for long-term ownership.

A lot of the time, these aren’t your standard block of apartments we’re talking about, developers are keen to create mini-communities, with communal rooms, pool tables, gaming consoles, work-fromhome spaces, concierge and in some cases, even hairdressers.

Ultimately, that amenity level within your building is something completely different to the service most landlords offer.

SO WHO’S TAKING A BITE OF THE PIE?

- Lloyds Banking Group PLC - 50,000 homes in the next ten years, with 10,000 by 2025

- Goldman Sachs Group Inc - buying nearly 1,000 homes in Northwest England

- Legal and General has over 5,000 apartments in planning development or up and running

In fact, Savills expect that once the market has matured, B2R could make up one-third of the rental market. A third!

Okay, now that got your attention.

A study by Dataloft comparing against the wider private rental sector found that BTR had a similar customer profile - looking at age, profession, affordability and income.

“BTR residents’ incomes are broadly similar to those in the wider private sector – in the urban BTR sample, 32 per cent of residents earn between £19,000 and £32,000 per year and in the full private rental sector it is 37 per cent,” Dataloft stated.

The report also stated, “What’s more, BTR doesn’t just provide residents with a home for their monthly rent payment – 78 per cent of schemes in the urban data had a roof terrace or shared garden, 73 per cent a have a concierge, 73 per cent have social events, 69 per cent have parcel acceptance and storage, and 61 per cent have a coworking space.”

But we’re nowhere near that maturity figure that Savills foresees, and whilst they didn’t say how long until they felt it would get there, what we can say is it’s not something that’s going to happen overnight. Although, judging by the speed at which some of these places are getting built, it may not be forever and a day.

IS BTR A BIG THREAT?

So is it all over for landlords? Should we pack up, cash in and find something else to do?

Well, it’s perhaps not quite time for that. Let’s not forget at the core of everything remains the fundamentals of supply and demand. Which is a balance that’s yet to settle, hence the recent rental increases. And this mass exodus of landlords we keep hearing about (although actual figures are proving it has been somewhat overstated) isn’t exactly going to help settle that, is it?

“It’s not doom and gloom,” Riley says, “we can all have a piece of the pie.”

The point is, with so much demand in the market, you’d struggle to say BTR is going to destroy the private rental sector. At least not anytime soon. But that’s not to say it won’t impact it. New buildings, work-from-home areas, package acceptance and storage, there’s no way that this becoming more common won’t impact the expectations of renters. Especially if price points aren’t too far off the private rental sector.

Who will get hit first? Well, the likely case is the lower standard rental properties with landlords who aren’t all that bothered about providing a good quality service. Who, and let’s face it, if you’re this deep into a magazine instead of turning off all your devices to avoid the calls from your tenants saying the house is falling apart, probably isn’t you. And if they do take a hit, that’s possibly not a bad thing. In fact, it’s very possible, the standard will increase across the board. As Riley discusses below.

The large institutions will have their reputation at stake here, so we shouldn’t bank on slipping standards from them.

HOW TO COMBAT THE BTR THREAT?

There’s no shocking revelation here, it’s all simple stuff. If we are providing a good quality service, BTR isn’t, for many of us, a large threat, and won’t be anytime soon.

Riley says: “Raising the standard of units in the area, I see that as a positive, some may view that as a negative to their situation if they don’t have the funds… The landlord that doesn’t want to keep up may be lost. Those that invest, insulate their properties and offer a more personal service will survive and probably thrive...The landlords who aren’t adaptable to the market changing will fall away.”

We do though, need to be aware of the market, what renters can get elsewhere and for what money. And that requires some objectivity, which can be hard. Especially when you’ve spent time and money on a place. If though, a brand new block appears around the corner, with all the bells and whistles at the same price point, it may be that you need to adjust to keep competitive.

“Small landlords can compete by differentiating themselves and offering a more personal service, that could be more flexible terms, BTRs are often longer contracts, whereas landlords can go shorter which may suit others better… Landlords can be more flexible. BTR companies will have minimums that are set, whereas landlords can keep flexible. There’s a bit of a cat and mouse game that can be played,” Riley explains.

Riley, whose portfolio includes a number of HMOs describes a number of the steps he and his team take to try to build the same community BTRs have in order to keep competitive.

“We try to build a community within the house, whether that’s pizza Fridays or other things. We’re trying to put that spirit into the house. If it takes it takes, if it doesn’t that’s fine.”

What’s clear is BTR is here to stay, but so is traditional landlording, so roll those sleeves up and keeping working on your service.

Millions of institutional pounds are being funnelled into the nascent but growing build to rent sector. Could this be the beginning of the end for the smaller landlord or property business?

Daley

Welcome to beginner’s corner - Each month in this special section of ON THE HOUSE Magazine we will deep dive into an important step that will help newbie investors on their way to being fully-fledged property investors.

CHOOSING THE RIGHT STRATEGY FOR YOU

When it comes to property, the journey of a thousand steps begins with figuring out your plan of action. Alex Daley leads the way with our first beginner’s corner how to guide.

In the first episode of beginners corner, we’re going to start right at the beginning - funny that. Choosing the right property strategy for you.

So what are the factors you need to consider?

Most commonly the answer to that question is:

• Time

• Money

• Your position

• (And knowledge - but that’s what we are here for!)

There are a bunch of other smaller factors, but let’s cover the big ones here. These are factors specific to you, rather than nonpersonal specific points, such as choosing the right property and making sure it stacks.

your position. You need to be armed with all of your financial information, be honest with them and then let them do the digging and find out what you have available to you. Of course, this assumes you’re going down the lending route, which most people will be.

For you, this conversation may mean you don’t have access to certain strategies, that’ll help narrow things down.

Those conversations will allow you to cross strategies off your list that you just don’t have access to yet. If that includes the strategy you thought you’d start with, don’t worry, this is a long play.

MONEY (AKA FUNDS)

Your starting position financially is of course another huge limiting factor. If you’re limited with starting funds you may be looking at the rent-to-rent route (check THIS article out for inspiration there). If you have a fair chunk of money to start with, you could look at more capitalintensive strategies - BRRR (Buy Refurbish, Refinance, Rent - read more HERE) and if you’re somewhere in the middle, you may be looking at more ready-made investments, standard single lets or ready-made HMOs. By more ready-made, I mean those which may still need a bit of work, a lick of paint, and carpets, but not needing thousands of pounds worth of work.

Of course, the other factor here to consider is where you’re investing geographically. A standard single let, down south can cost a lot more than a large HMO up north, so this isn’t an exact science, but you get my point.

TIME AVAILABLE

YOUR POSITION

I’ve chosen this one first as it’s a huge limiting factor and one that I had to battle when I first started investing. I wanted to jump straight into HMOs (house of multiple occupation), but at the age of 24, with no residential home to speak of and being selfemployed, that was a complete no-go from a lender’s perspective. You can read about why I chose to buy a BTL before a residential HERE.

So, before we decide what you want to do strategy-wise, let’s work out what you actually can do. The first conversations you want to have are with:

1. A good property accountant

2. A good mortgage broker

With the accountant (who like the broker can be found through recommendation of other more experienced investors), you need to establish how to structure your business whether in a limited company or in your personal name, if it’s just you, a joint venture with other people etc. Then you take that to your broker and tell them about

How much time you have to dedicate to your new property venture is going to impact a lot of decisions. Whether you self-manage or not, whether you can deal with a renovation, that sort of thing.

If you have the time (and desire to use it) and the funds, BRRR is a great starting point. Lots of investors advise starting with single lets rather than more complex strategies like HMO, largely down to their relative simplicity, both at the start and ongoing. And (entirely anecdotally) it seems most people

do start there. There’s a lot less regulation, tenant turnover, and generally a lot less stuff that goes wrong compared to say, HMOs, which means it’s a lot less hands-on (generally) for the self-managers.

So why BRRR? Well, this could take a full article, which maybe *hint, hint - looking at you Mr editor* I’ll also write. In short, BRRR allows you to re-use your money time after time to grow your portfolio much faster than the classic, buy, save, reinvest, buy type approach many adopt. By raising value (in the same way you would if you were flipping), you’re able to seek greater loans from the bank, to go again and again. It does though, come with the stresses of having to deal with a renovation, the costs of the renovation and of course, costs from the time it takes to get it ready to rent - council tax, utilities, no rent, etc.

BONUS FACTOR: GOALS

For some property is a means to an extra pension and they are content to reinvest any extra cashflow. For others it is the means to escape the nine-to-five and cashflow is key to that freedom. You need to be clear on your short-term, medium-term and longterm goals (see BTL Group’s founder Wes advice on goal-setting here) as these will also majorly inform which strategy you choose - if it is cashflow you need, you might need to look at HMOs or serviced accommodation, if it is equity growth and a pension - you can’t go far wrong with simple vanilla buy-to-lets.

SO WHICH IS BEST FOR YOU?

Well, that depends on your position, how much cash you have, how much time you have and want to dedicate to this and, of course, what your goals are. But this should help steer you with your decision making. If you take nothing else from it - get yourself set up right from the start. Get clear on what’s best for your position.

BUILDING A BULLETPROOF PORTFOLIO

Many property investors find a strategy that works for them and tend to stick to what they know without ever trying something new. Wanting to specialise in an area you’ve mastered well is understandable, and while this approach may work for a period of time, having all of your eggs in one basket could be a bad idea. Market changes, legislation changes, and tenant circumstances can change very quickly – potentially exposing you to risk.

By diversifying your buy-to-let portfolio and stepping out of your comfort zone, you can protect your investments from market forces beyond your control.

Generally speaking, no properties are both high-yielding and high capital growth, but a diverse portfolio can include properties of a lower cost and higher yield, as well as lower yield properties that’ll deliver healthy capital growth long-term.

One void period will matter far less in a sizeable portfolio than in a small portfolio. Additionally, the financial effects of one underperforming property can be absorbed much better in a larger portfolio and reduce the negative impact.

However, even with a large portfolio, if all of your buy-to-let properties are in the same area with the same tenant type, your portfolio is less robust than you might think, and any changes could negatively affect your whole portfolio. By aiming for a large and diverse buy-to-let portfolio, you can significantly reduce the risk of impact on your investments.

Here are some ways to diversify your buy-to-let property portfolio:

OPTION 1: DIVERSIFY - STRATEGIES

A strategy such as serviced accommodation can provide a high-yielding cash flow but vary greatly depending on seasons. Alternatively, standard long-term lets can provide a consistent income level but deliver lower yields.

HMOs can also generate higher returns than standard buy-to-lets but typically do not generate the same long-term capital growth. Similarly, flipping a property for a healthy profit can provide the cash to purchase more buy-to-let properties and generate long-term cashflow.

By including different strategies such as serviced accommodation, HMOs and standard single lets in your portfolio, you can counterbalance some of the seasonal highs and lows and bring more variety to your portfolio resulting in healthy cashflow and long-term capital growth. We would advise though, taking your time to perfect one strategy first before moving on to the next.

OPTION 2: DIVERSIFY - PROPERTY TYPES

There are pros and cons to investing in houses and apartments, and many landlords prefer to focus on one or the other. Usually, investors who prefer houses claim the savings on ground rent and fees allow them to generate a better profit from houses, while investors who prefer apartments say they benefit from not having the unpredictable maintenance costs of houses. Apartments and houses are also

Joel White is not just the founder of the Buy To Let Property Group’s preferred mortgage broker partner but also a property investor himself. He lays out the options to minimising risk while still benefiting from the returns property can offer

subject to different market forces, which was clear throughout the pandemic when most tenants were craving outdoor space.

It is also worth considering the differences between old and new properties and the benefits and risks they could bring to your portfolio. For example, new builds can be extremely energy-efficient, meet EPC regulations and require less maintenance, while older properties have desirable period features that tenants also love.

OPTION 3: DIVERSIFY - AREAS

By investing in just one area, your portfolio’s performance is tied to the highs and lows of that area.

It is also important to note that the typical property cycle can pan out at different times in different locations. So, while one area may recover quickly, another may take longer.

By spreading your portfolio wisely across different locations, you can ensure that at least one part of your portfolio is always growing to offset any under-performing areas.

You can also increase your chances of investing in a ‘hotspot’ simply by investing in more areas. Some locations are strong on rental income, and others are more focused on capital growth.

The downside to many landlords looking to diversify into different areas is that the right investment will oftentimes be in a different area from where they live. But the benefits of diversification outweigh the risks if you can look beyond the initial hassle of traveling to view properties and manage a property remotely.

OPTION 4: DIVERSIFY - TENANT TYPES

By diversifying property types and areas, you’ll almost certainly diversify in tenant type, which can greatly reduce your risk of market forces.

For example, by investing in different areas at different property values, you’re unlikely to have many tenants working for one employer or in one industry that could be subject to market forces beyond your control.

Families typically rent a house in urban or rural areas, while young people and professionals typically rent a city centre apartment. There is also another tenant you should consider as they are unlikely to be affected by market changes – tenants on Universal Credit. Some landlords prefer not to rent to people receiving benefits because of the challenges that tend to come with these types of tenants. However, benefit income is ‘recession-proof’, and these properties can be extremely beneficial to your portfolio during a downturn.

READY TO DIVERSIFY YOUR PORTFOLIO?

Diversification is all about protecting your portfolio from external shocks. While no portfolio can be entirely bulletproof, by diversifying as much as possible, you can minimise the impact of any negative market changes.

The best recession-proof buy-to-let portfolio is one that consists of a variety of property types, tenant types, areas and strategies. That way, you will most likely minimise your voids, keep your portfolio generating a healthy cashflow each month, and benefit from longterm capital growth.

WHAT IS BUY-TO-LET INSURANCE?

If you are new to buy-to-let investing there can be a lot to get to grips with. In order to help you find the information you need - when it comes to insurance anyway - our team has put their heads together to answer your frequently asked questions and dispel a few myths about buy-to-let insurance.

WHAT IS BUY-TO-LET INSURANCE?

Buy-to-let Insurance is commonly known as landlord Insurance or BTL Insurance. It’s a policy designed to protect landlords and their investment properties.

WHO IS BTL INSURANCE FOR?

BTL insurance is designed for residential or commercial landlords, either with a single investment property or a multi-property portfolio.

DO I NEED BUY-TO-LET INSURANCE?

Although it’s not a legal requirement, you’re likely to need BTL Insurance if you have a mortgage on your rental property. Banks need to know their investment is protected if your property is damaged or destroyed. As such, they will insist that you have landlord (or buy-to-let) buildings insurance as a minimum. Even if you don’t have a mortgage, landlord Insurance provides vital peace of mind. You know your investment – and your finances – are protected if the worst happens.

CAN I BUY HOME INSURANCE

INSTEAD?

Unfortunately, not. If you rent out a residential property, home insurance doesn’t provide suitable protection for the risks you face. BTL insurance provides cover for additional risks. For instance, it includes Property Owners Liability cover (see below), which isn’t included with Home Insurance..

WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN BTL INSURANCE AND LANDLORD INSURANCE?

There isn’t one! The two policies are essentially the same.

HOW MUCH DOES BUY-TO-LET INSURANCE COST?

Landlord BTL insurance, like many other insurance products, is dependent on a number of different factors, including your own claims history, the condition of the property and whether you buy any additional protection and tenant type.

CAN I GET INSURANCE FOR AN EMPTY BTL PROPERTY?

Most residential landlord insurance will cover an empty property for up to 90 days between tenants. If the property is empty for longer than this, you will need to arrange specialist cover, because the risks faced by an unoccupied property differ from those of a tenanted property. Remember to let your broker know if your property is going to be unoccupied for a prolonged period. They can advise on the appropriate course of action.

WHAT DOES BUY-TO-LET INSURANCE COVER?

It covers a range of areas, protecting you and your property. Covers include:

Property Owners’ Liability - Protects you if your tenants, their guests or a member of the public is injured, develops an illness or suffers property damage and they sue you. Employers’ Liability Insurance - If you have employees or contractors working at your property, this protects you if they are injured or get ill as a result of visiting your property.

Landlord Buildings Insurance - This protects the fabric of your property (walls, floors, ceilings etc.) in the event of damage or destruction, up to the rebuild value. Landlord Contents Insurance - This covers

your items within the property (such as light fittings or white goods). Tenants can protect their own items with a separate tenant’s contents insurance.

Loss of Rent Insurance: This covers the value of your rental income if your property becomes uninhabitable following an insured event, such as a flood or fire.

Landlord Legal Expenses - This covers any legal costs you may suffer as a result of running your rental business, for instance, evicting your tenant due to unpaid rent. Rent Guarantee Insurance - This is an extension that can be added to Landlord Legal Expenses. This policy covers your rental income if you have to start legal proceedings due to a tenant not paying the rent and you apply for permission to evict.

DOES BTL INSURANCE COVER NON-MALICIOUS DAMAGE?

Yes, accidental damage to your buildings and contents is typically covered. Some policies will also include malicious damage and theft by the tenant cover.

HOW DO I GET A QUOTE?

You can go directly to an insurer or use a price comparison website, but we’d advocate using an independent insurance broker (obviously!) An insurance broker will speak to you about your unique circumstances before finding the best landlord insurance for your individual needs. Because you’re working with a real person, they can answer any questions you may have about your policy and provide advice about managing your risks.

To get a competitive landlord insurance quote please call our office on 0121 679 7265

Pinder Dhaliwal, managing director of ON THE HOUSE Magazine sponsor Falcon Insurance quizzes his team about what new investors need to know when it comes to insuring their investment property

AHEAD OF THE GAME

The Buy to Let Preferred Tax advisors Astonia Associates consider a client’s full tax picture when advising them and that includes property investments. Prior to the end of the tax year (April 5th for most) MD Paul Weller has a few tips to consider

Now that New Year’s resolutions are out of the way - well done you if you’re still doing the couch to 5K! - it’s a good time to start planning your tax affairs before the end of the tax year. An obvious tax planning point would be to maximise your ISA allowances for the 2022/23 tax year, currently £20,000 each. Here are a few other quick tips:

PONDERING PENSIONS

You might want to consider increasing your pension savings before April 5th as the unused annual pension allowance from 2019/20 lapses after three years.

For most taxpayers the maximum pension contribution is £40,000 each tax year, although this depends on their earnings. This limit covers both contributions by the individual and by their employer. Under the current rules, the government adds to your pension contributions at the 20% basic rate. For instance, if you save £4,000 in a personal pension the government tops this up to £5,000. If you are a higher rate taxpayer there is a further £1,000 tax relief when your tax liability is calculated, reducing the net cost to £3,000. This can be even more effective if your income is between £100,000 and £125,140 where the effective tax rate is 60%. Remember that pension fund investments can go down as well as up.

ANNUAL CGT ALLOWANCE

The Capital Gains Tax annual exempt amount reduces from £12,300 to just £6,000 for gains made in 2023/24. Remember that the 2022/23 allowance is lost if not used by April 5th and you might want to consider bringing forward disposals of chargeable assets where possible. Where a married couple who are higher rate taxpayers own

a buy-to-let property, bringing forward the disposal from 2023/24 could potentially save £3,528 CGT (£24,600 - £12,000 @28%). It would be important to exchange contracts before April 6th, 2023 as that is the critical date for CGT.

KNOW YOUR ABCS (SHARES)

A common issue with new clients that we engage with and relevant to investors with limited companies: the company has been set up with ordinary A shares and it may now be appropriate to restructure the company with A and B shares which allow different dividends to be paid to the different classes of shareholders.

This can allow a partner with a lower tax position to take higher dividends rather than some dividends falling into a higher tax bracket with the other partner.

Different classes of Alphabet Shares can also allow children to be become shareholders and can be tax efficient for financing higher education – subject to certain rules and conditions.

AIA HERE TO STAY

The £1 Million Annual Investment Allowance (AIA) is now permanent. The 130% super-deduction referred to below only applies to limited companies, however the Annual Investment Allowance (AIA) is available to unincorporated businesses as well as limited companies.

In the recent Autumn Statement the Chancellor announced that the AIA for expenditure on plant and machinery would become a permanent £1 million allowance.

The annual limit was originally scheduled to revert to just £200,000 from January 1st, 2021 and has been extended twice to March 31st, 2023. Businesses will welcome the certainty that this provides.

THE LIST

You could Google it but you’re already here… This is by no means an extensive listing but it is our personally-curated list of useful contacts, services and resources for property investing and beyond.

INSURANCE SERVICES

Falcon Insurance

LIMITED COMPANY SERVICES

GetGround

TAXES AND ACCOUNTANCY SERVICES

Astonia Associates

MAINTENANCE SERVICES

Ark

MORTGAGE SERVICES

Ramsey and White

FINANCES AND PORTFOLIO TRACKING

Hammock

PROPERTY FINANCE TRAINING

Kevin Wright – Recycle your cash

DEPOSIT PROTECTION SCHEMES

Tenancy Deposit Scheme

My Deposits

DPS

ZeroDeposit

UTILITIES

Gas Safe National Grid Energy Ombudsman

EPC SERVICES

tenancydepositscheme.com mydeposits.co.uk depositprotection.com zerodeposit.com

Rich Dad, Poor Dad – Robert Kiyosaki. The book that so many people chart as their epiphany moment and that started them down the path to property investing.

What financial advice could you possibly glean from a civilisation 4,000 years ago? Turns out a heck of a lot as the parables of Arkad reveal universal wealthbuilding truths along the way.

Think and Grow Rich – Napoleon Hill. The all-time best seller that through extensive research on wealthy folk aims to coach you to

The Complete Guide to Property Investing A solid overview of the property investment game although readers should look to supplement with current information.

Property Magic – Simon Zutshi. Now in its 6th edition Zutchi’s book takes readers through many different strategies that if applied correctly will help accelerate your investing

House Arrest – Rick Gannon. The subhead ‘A Practical Guide on How to Replace Your Income Through Property Investing’ say it all, with the addition of noting a focus on HMOs. So, if you are considering entering the competitive world of HMOs give this a read. Never Split the Difference – Chris Voss. Sharpen up your negotiation skills with an exFBI hostage negotiator in your corner.

How to Win Friends and Influence People – Dale Carnegie. A time-honoured tome that will boost everything from you vendor interactions to your offer writing skills.

BLOGS

MrMoneyMustache – Pete Adney writing in his alter-ego as Mr Money Mustache. The FIRE movement and extreme frugality might not be for everyone but Pete’s logic, contrarian perspective and entertaining style of writing are a boon for anyone interested in personal finance. Pinch of salt required for US-centric advice.

National Network of Accredited Assessors

Swindon Energy – Paul Crovella

Eco4 grant applications

EPC Experts

NETWORKING

gassaferegister.co.uk nationalgrid.com ombudsman-services.org theepcman.co.uk heatinggrants.io epcexperts.org

Partners in Property (PIP) – Comprehensive paid for networking and education full day sessions with a promise of zero hard sell.

The Motley Fool – Long-running investment and market commentator website that focuses on stocks and shares investing and believes ‘individuals can beat the market’ with a long-term overview and a hands-on financial management approach.

BTL Group Preffered Partner

PODCASTS

Inside Property Investing – HMO Focused investing experience advice from Mike and Victoria Stenhouse, somehow unpretentiously dispensed from their yacht in sunnier shores.

The Property Podcast – The Robs have been dispensing free property wisdom for almost a decade. Impartial and in-depth advice garnered through years of experience and research.

Wealth Builders – A rounded approach to all things money making, keeping and financial fortress building from Kevin Wheelan and Christian Wheelan.

The Side Hustle Show – Inspiration for all those who are looking to make a little extra deposit dough on the side. American but features plenty of universal tips, ideas and concepts that can be within and without a property business.

The Property Jam – A light-hearted and quirky panel show around all things landlording that also reveals plenty of useful and actionable info along the way.

Naked Money – The Naked Trader takes us through stock market fundamentals and his own hard won rules to investing which feature in his award-winning book.

YOUTUBE CHANNELS

Jamie York – No nonsense, plain speaking advice from an investor who favours in his own words, plain and boring, bog standard buy to lets.

Rentals to Wealth – Infectiously positive pairing who sprung off a Bigger Pockets featurette and take you behind the scene of their house hacking and renovation efforts. US-centric but great for motivation.

New2Property – Perma-paint-splashed hands on investor Dan Coachafer gets into the sort of seriously granular detail that only that is perfect for true property fans and also for educating yourself on pitfalls a you go about portfolio building.

Ali Abdaal – Ali covers everything from selfdevelopment to business and investment in a millennial friendly-fashion. For those who adopt an always be learning check out Ali’s best hits.

AS FEATURED IN ON THE HOUSE MAGAZINE

Martin Baker – Founder of the EPC Man Network

Kev Dendy – Action-taking new investor and member of the RoundTable Mastermind Group

Suzi Carter – Commercial Property Investment advisor, creator of the Commercial Property Academy and chartered surveyor.

Sue Simms – Social Housing investment expert, long-term investor, agency owner and partner in Partners in Property.

Kevin Wright – Property Finance Expert who has been investing in property for four decades

Danny Inman – Experienced developer, investor, business person and co-founder of Prosperity Network

Sean Thomson – South African investor who founded WealthTrek to help fellow countrypersons invest in the UK property market.

Stephen Kempt – North West ambitious investor with plans for property-funded animal rescue sanctuary

Ross Harper – Glasgow investor and businessman founder of Auction House Scotland

Debbie Dorans – North East Property investment expert, strategist and mentor. Founder of Vigeo Property Hub

Adam Lawrence – Investor with over 500 deals under his belt, co-founder or Partners in Property Network and Co-Founder at Boardroom Club Consulting

David Williams – HMO Investor and founder of Beelief Property

Lee Scott – Long-term single let property investor

Jackie Gammage – Rent to rent investor

Nick Gordon – Eviction specialist, investor and founder of Evict My Tenant

Dave Cordner – Author - ‘Serviced Accommodation 5 Star Fundamentals’, serviced accommodation coach and Founder of Central Belfast Apartments

Alfie Best – Sunday Times Rich lister, gypsy businessman and property investor.

Jamie Greaves – Serviced accommodation investor

EMOTIONAL EVICTIONS

We consider ourselves cautious optimists as investors and producers of this mag. So for balance, instead of finishing on a positive note as so many magazines do, we like to get things off our chest. Wes De Leur (BTL Property Group Founder) –you’re up, just let it all out…

Starting out in property can be extremely daunting. That is especially that case with your first property – almost desperately hoping to get it all right first time round when the risk can actually be the highest. The emotions attached to that first property are immense but, for me anyway, that emotional attachment or stress level diminished with every subsequent deal.

That is why when you have to deal with your first problem tenant those fears and anxieties can come rushing back.

The rules and regulations are so stacked in the tenant’s favour it is like trying to play Jenga, blindfolded, on a boat, in the North Sea… on rollerskates!

So, I would always recommend enlisting the services of an eviction specialist. When a tenant digs their heels in, gets counsel on how to play the system, one incorrect procedure or not following the process can lead to a very drawn out and stressful affair. After all, landlords often rely on the income from their property in some way, shape or form and not receiving this can be painful. Add to that some lovely vindictive damages after they finally get out and it’s a stark reality of the tough side of property investing,

The process definitely leaves battle scars. You only have to ask any investor who has had to go through the correct eviction procedures. And it happened to me recently.

We rented to a woman who started out as a model tenant, paying rent on time and never any issues other than the odd maintenance request which we always stay on top of. We always conduct quarterly inspections and the last one did not raise any alarm bells. Five years, no bother. Then, the rent stopped and just like that all communication ceased.

We issued letters requesting payment followed by the correct notices after the required timescales. It was evident that this tenant

was being coached on exactly how to play the game. When dealing with this for your first time it is like a bad game of emotional bingo – Anger, check! Frustration, check! Fear, check! Anxiety, check!

That is why I can’t emphasise enough - having the right people to deal with this situation is important. Constant dialog with your eviction specialist is key. Weekly updates are a great way of dealing with the flood of emotions which will follow.

After a few evictions over the years my mindset is to always expect the worst and if you do receive your property back in a half decent condition, then that is the added bonus.

No matter how well you think you know your tenants and no matter how good a landlord you think you are, you will have to deal with a rogue tenant that will damage your property. It’s not a matter of if but when. Maybe one year, three years or 10 years but it will happen at some point. Be ready.

At the same time however, don’t let this side of property investing stand in the way of your dream and greatness! After all most of us are doing a fantastic job of providing excellent, comfortable houses for our tenants and don’t ever compromise on that.

Happy investing all!