The View: Tayo Oguntonade

TIPPED FOR THE TOP!

Tayo Oguntonade is a TV presenter and can be seen presenting Great House Giveaway on Channel 4, which this year scored a hattrick, winning Best Daytime Programme at the BAFTAs, RTS and Broadcast Awards. He is also an experienced mortgage broker, property expert and influencer. He tells Lynda Clark about his fascinating life, the first property he bought at the age of 22 and has some great advice for first time buyers

Photos © Channel 4

"I WAS 22 AND I DECIDED TO WORK OUT WHAT I COULD AFFORD AND LOOKED AROUND THE SITTINGBOURNE AREA. IT WAS A BIT OF A GAMBLE AS I DIDN’T KNOW THE AREA BUT I REALISED IT WAS UP-AND-COMING SO WOULD BE A GOOD INVESTMENT"

Imet Tayo for our chat on a Zoom call, which is the norm nowadays, and even though we were talking through a screen I immediately knew he was passionate about property and helping others get on the ladder and that we were going to get on really well. Tayo was brought up in south east London and he describes the area as “tough”. His parents, who are originally from Nigeria, instilled in Tayo and his two brothers that getting a good education was very important and so he took his schooling very seriously.

“I loved maths as I am a numbers person. My parents moved to Catford and then further out to Orpington in Kent, which was a big change for me as all my friends were back in south east London and it was quite a long journey to go to see them. I eventually went to a sixth form college in Beckenham and many of my old friends went there too, which was great. It was rather strange though because we were surrounded by quite privileged people. For example, when they passed their driving test they would be given a brand new car straight out of the showroom and that was never going to be the situation for me or my friends. So, I realised if I wanted a car I would have to work and save. We all got jobs – I worked in Sainsbury’s – and I saved and saved and eventually bought a 12-year-old Ford Fiesta, which wasn’t new but it got me around and opened up my world.”

Tayo went on to study economics at university and explained, “My student loan didn’t cover what I needed for rent let alone living expenses. Again, I had to get a part-time job to help and I also managed to save again. I was crazy on cars at that time so it made me work really hard so I could save up to buy a new car. I worked for a telesales company and I even stayed there during the holidays, often working between 60 and 70 hours a week, so I could continue working and saving and I actually managed to change my car three times during the period I was studying because I was saving so hard. "My interest in property started when I was in a house share and I got friendly with the landlord and as I am a numbers man I worked out how much he made from all the rents he took. After I left uni I went back home and lived with my parents who didn’t want me to pay any rent, which was very good of them. I got a job and managed to save about £1,100 a month and then I spent whatever was left over on myself. I did realise though that every time I bought a new car its value depreciated the minute I drove it away and it got me thinking that I needed to invest in something that actually went up in value. "I was 22 and I decided to work out what I could afford and looked around the Sittingbourne area. It was a bit of a gamble as I didn’t know the area but I realised it was up-and-coming so would be a good investment. I eventually bought my first house there, a three bedroom terraced home which I bought for £150,000. My mortgage was £500 a month and I thought back to what my landlord had told me and I rented out the big double bedroom for £500 a month and the single one for £400 a month, so my mortgage was taken care of and I made a profit as well! Sittingbourne is well placed for commuting and with my house share model I was very happy.”

He worked as a personal banker for Santander at the time and realised that to further his career he needed to become a mortgage adviser. He asked Santander if they would train him and they agreed but kept saying maybe next year, so Tayo decided to do it himself and paid for his training and to take the exams. He passed and immediately left his job and moved on to working for the biggest estate agent in Kent. He now lives in south east London with his wife and two young daughters in a four bedroom terraced house. He still has the house he originally bought in Sittingbourne, which has doubled in value. "Then in late 2019 my wife and I started BrickzwithTipz, a property blogging platform, as we had started using social media to give advice on buying your first home. It has been a huge success and it was the perfect timing to launch it as we soon went into lockdown and people had a lot of time on their hands and generally the property world was booming. We have well over 70,000 followers and we really enjoy giving our expertise to help dispel the myths of buying a home.”

It was during the pandemic that Chwarel, a production company in North Wales, saw a YouTube video he had made and contacted him about presenting a show on Channel 4 called Great House Giveaway. He was a great success and has just finished filming the third series. This year the show won Best Daytime Programme at the BAFTAs, RTS and Broadcast Awards and Tayo was also nominated for Best Debut Presenter at the Edinburgh Television Festival.

He has also joined the presenting team on Channel 4 on a show called Key to a Fortune. The show reunites families with homes and relatives they didn’t know they had and he is thoroughly enjoying it. He is also a regular on Steph’s Packed Lunch, Rip Off Britain, Watchdog, the BBC News and Morning Live. Although he is a very busy he still has time to support and work with 2020 Change, a youth empowerment organisation renowned for helping young people realise their potential and cultivate the right mindset to engage with today’s changing society.

Tayo has some excellent advice for first time buyers and said, “Time in the market is better than timing the market. A good example of this is in January 2020; there were 95% mortgages available but many people didn’t take this up as they thought property prices would go down. But they were wrong as house prices have shot up and so have interest rates, so timing is very important. After the financial crash in 2008 it took seven years for prices to recover to the level they were before the crash so property is a long-term investment. "But, for first time buyers your first home will not be your forever home. It is hard to get on the ladder because most people are paying rent and bills and cannot save for their very important deposit. It does look like an impossible goal but try to get as much knowledge and information about the homebuying process before you start as it will put you in a much better position.

In 2022 Tayo was selected to be in the Top 25 Entrepreneurs to Watch list, which is run by UK Black Business Week and sponsored by HSBC. I certainly think Tayo is one to watch and I think we will be seeing a great deal more of him in the years to come.

"TIME IN THE MARKET IS BETTER THAN TIMING THE MARKET. A GOOD EXAMPLE OF THIS IS IN JANUARY 2020; THERE WERE 95% MORTGAGES AVAILABLE BUT MANY PEOPLE DIDN’T TAKE THIS UP AS THEY THOUGHT PROPERTY PRICES WOULD GO DOWN"

IG: @brickzwithtipz TikTok: @brickzwithtipz Website: brickzwithtipz.com

"I REALISED IF I WANTED A CAR I WOULD HAVE TO WORK AND SAVE. WE ALL GOT JOBS – I WORKED IN SAINSBURY’S – AND I SAVED AND SAVED AND EVENTUALLY BOUGHT A 12-YEAR-OLD FORD FIESTA, WHICH WASN’T NEW BUT IT GOT ME AROUND AND OPENED UP MY WORLD”