Come late September and early October, everyone will want their boilers serviced, or tenants will be trying to turn them on and discovering that no heat is coming through. The autumn is a busy time for gas services and the services of boiler engineers are often in demand. Your tenants will be quick to complain if the boiler isn’t working when they want to heat the house, so why not get in early and do the necessary checks now or at least get an early boiler service booked in before the rush?

It’s also a good opportunity to get the pipe work checked and ensure that the radiators in your properties are all working well. Blocked air in the pipes can cause problems once the heating is back on – radiators may stay cold, be only partially warm or there may be all sorts of odd rumblings and noises in the pipes. They’re all issues that tenants typically come running back to you for help with sorting out, but you could avoid this by taking care of maintenance now.

If you are booking a boiler service, don’t forget to agree a suitable time with your tenants first. A service doesn’t normally take too long, but they will want to be prepared and know in advance when it will be. If you have a gas boiler and gas fire, then it’s also a good chance to get a gas fire serviced too. The property will then be fully functional and ready to handle all heating needs when the weather turns cooler.

1. Use the services of an expert company

If you’ve never bought a property at auction before and want to ensure you get the best deal, with no hidden costs, then it’s well worth using the services of an expert company, like HBF Investments. They’ll hold your hand throughout the process, doing all the hard work for you and ensuring you get the property you want, at the price you can afford.

2. Get finance arranged before the auction

One of the important aspects of buying property at auction, as opposed to through an estate agent or seller, is that you’ll need to get your finance properly sorted out in advance. If you don’t have the money available to pay for the property, then you could end up being fined.

3. Stick to your auction property budget

It’s beneficial to go to a property auction with a clear idea in your mind of exactly how much your budget is. If you want to have a bit of leeway, in case bidding is fierce, then set yourself a strict upper limit. When a bidding war erupts, it’s all too easy to get carried away with bidding, then regret the price you’ve paid later. If your ultimate aim is to make money on your property investment, then getting the right price is essential.

4. Do your research before the property auction

It’s essential to thoroughly do your research before you attend the property auction. That means checking out the properties you’re interested in by reading the particulars, visiting the building, checking the small print and legal issues so that you know exactly what is, and isn’t, on offer.

All too often people make the mistake of not researching a property, then bidding on what seems like a good lot, only to discover later that it’s not what they thought.

When you’re making an investment, and in this case in property, then it’s important to know what return on it you’ll get. Anyone making an investment, rather than a personal purchase, wants to know that the investment will be worth their while and that they’ll make some money on it, either in the short or long term.

The term rental yield is used to describe the amount of return you get on your investment property. It’s expressed in terms of a percentage, such as 5%, 7.6% or 10%.

Calculating The Rental Yield of an Investment Property

Rental yield can easily be worked out with a mathematical calculation. Some people work out the gross rental yield, but for a more accurate figure that takes into account how much you’ve spent on expenses, you can work out the net rental yield.

To calculate the gross rental yield of a property investment:

Divide the annual income from the property by the purchase price, then multiply it by 100. This will give you the percentage rate of return, or rental yield.

To calculate the net rental yield of a property investment:

Divide the net income from the property (how much income you have after any expenses have been taken out) by the purchase price, then multiply this figure by 100. This gives you the net rental yield percentage, or rate of return on your property investment.

Knowing the rental yield of a property is important for property investors as it shows how well, or not, your property is performing. If you’re considering investing in other properties, it’s also very useful to be able to calculate the potential rental yield of a property, as it can help you decide whether or not a particular property is likely to be a good investment for you.

p.s. HOT TIP – to maximise rental yields the best advice (for those who do not want the hassle of HMO properties) is to buy low priced houses with at least 3 beds and preferably 4 and rent them out to Local Housing Authority tenants (LHA).  You can get the same rent for a 4 bed detached worth £200K as you can for a 4 bed terrace worth £75K in the same area. Better still, the rent can be paid directly to you by the government!!

Check out the LHA rents on the website: https://lha-direct.voa.gov.uk/Secure/LHASearchIntro.aspx

When you buy a property with a freehold lease, you gain complete ownership of the land and all of the buildings that are on it. Subject to laws and planning regulations, you have the right to do what you want with the property. Most houses in the UK tend to have freehold leases, but many flats and apartments have leaseholds.

In contrast to freehold, a leasehold property is leased to the owners for a set amount of time and usually comes with particular terms and conditions that need to be met in relation to the property, such as paying an annual maintenance fee.

When you’re researching properties to buy and looking at the particulars of certain houses or flats, then it’s essential to get into the habit of checking to make sure whether it is freehold or leasehold. Although there’s nothing wrong with owning a leasehold property and many people successfully do so, some investors prefer to stick with stick with an area they’re familiar with and always opt for freehold properties above leasehold.

As with any property purchase, as long as you do your research carefully, read the small print and are always clear about exactly what you’re buying, then you’ll put yourself in the best position for buying.

Catch up on the other instalments in our A to Z of Property Investing series:

A is for Appreciation
B is for Buy-to-Let
C is for Contracts
D is for Deals
E is for Experience

Google maps property search

It’s been talked about for a while, and already exists in Australia, but now Google Maps has finally launched its new UK property search.

The Google maps property search has hundreds of thousands of properties for sale and up for rent in the UK. It includes results from several major property portals and estate agents (although not Rightmove or Primelocation, who have opted out of getting involved) and it’s also possible for landlords or home owners to list their own properties too, as long as they have a website.

The search facility is easy to use and you can search by location name, street or postcode. The results are shown on a map, so you can easily see the location of the property, and in a column on the left hand side of the screen, where a picture of the property and a brief write-up appears. If you’re interested in learning more, you can click through for more details, or use the Streetview option to see in more detail where the property is located.  

For landlords, the new search facility offers an additional way of getting your property noticed and for free. If you have an existing listing with a property portal or estate agent, then you may well find that your property is already on there. Individuals can upload details too, although there is the prerequisite that you have to have a website with the property listed on it too, so that Google can link through to it.

In addition to listing a property, the Google property search offers a good way of sussing out how much properties in certain areas are on the market for, what rental prices other landlords are charging and for sussing out the locations of different properties. Many property investors have already been taking advantage of the benefits of Google Streetview, which gives you a bird’s eye view of streets across the UK, and this offers another way of easily identifying properties.

The search will be useful for tenants too, as they can easily look at properties on a map and pick out the ones in areas they’re particularly interested in. So getting your properties included could be well worth it.

What do you think? Have you tried out the Google maps property search yet and are you planning to get your properties listed?

Related Posts

Why Property Investors Should Use Google Earth: Part 1
Why Property Investors Should Use Google Earth: Part 2

Both garages and parking spaces, particularly in prime positions, can attract considerable rental returns on both a weekly and monthly basis. If you have a garage that is located away from a property, such as in a garage block around the corner from the house, then it would be ideally located to rent separately, rather than included in the cost of the property rental.

Many people don’t worry so much about putting their cars into the garage each day, yet there are other people who welcome the benefits of garage space, for storing equipment, using as a workshop or for extra vehicles. Likewise, in towns and cities where parking is at a premium, many people value the chance to rent a parking space on a weekly or monthly basis, instead of having to compete for limited spaces within the town or city centre.

With parking spaces, you do need to ensure first and foremost that space is left available for your tenants to park their car, but if you have multiple spaces available, then it’s definitely worth considering renting some of them, especially if located in a desirable area.

To get an idea of the type of price you could charge for garage or parking space rental in your area, then have a look through the rentals in your local paper or search online. Alternatively, speak to a local estate agent, as they should be aware of how much garage rentals are in your area. This is something you could use a rental agent for, or you could manage the rentals yourself.

Have you had success with renting out a garage or parking space? Share your experience in the comments.

Business, trade directories and local directories, such as the Yellow Pages or locally produced free publications of tradespeople, are a good starting point for finding a builder in your local area. Browse through the ads, select a couple that you’re interested in, then give them a call to obtain more details. In your initial phone call, ask plenty of questions, such as the work they typically do, if they’re currently available and average costs of work. If you’re keen to see some examples of their finished work, then don’t be afraid to ask for testimonials too.

Where possible, arrange a meeting with the builder and see if they’re willing to offer a free quotation for the work you need to have carried out. First impressions are good, but you can often get a better idea of what they’re like and how they operate by meeting up. If they promise a quotation, but it takes weeks to occur or never appears, then you can move on to finding someone else.

Personal recommendations for builders are always good, especially if it’s from someone you know who’s recently used the services of a builder. This can help give a more accurate picture about how good the work was, how personable the builder was and how quickly and efficiently they got the job done.

There are a lot of websites where you can find details of builders, but one of the more reliable options is Checkatrade. Anyone registering on the site has to be vetted first, plus they are monitored on a regular basis through customer feedback, so there’s a much better chance that you’ll get a reputable worker and not a fly-by-night rogue trader.

Landlords letting out properties have certain obligations towards their tenants, especially in the case of houses with multiple occupation (HMO) where there are several tenants living under the same roof (Landlords with HMO properties are subject to additional fire safety requirements as part of their licensing requirements and need to follow the guidance carefully). Under the 2004 Housing Act, landlords in England and Wales need to ensure that all properties, whether flats or houses, have an adequate means of escape, especially from bedrooms in upper storeys, in case a fire occurs.

Landlords also need to ensure that any furniture, soft furnishings or fixtures that they supply with the property, such as beds, sofas or curtains, meet basic fire safety standards and don’t pose a risk for tenants. If you’re re-letting a property to new tenants, particularly if it’s been previously let out for a long time, then it’s a good idea to re-check all your furniture and furnishings for wear, tear and damage and ensure they meet the current fire safety standards.

If your property was built after 1992, then it has to have a mains operated smoke alarm fitted on each level, according to building regulations. This isn’t the case for older properties, but it is advisable to provide battery operated alarms and you may want to consider fire doors and basic equipment to help put out fires, such as a fire extinguisher or fire blanket, too. These would be ideally located in the kitchen.

If you do have a smoke alarm in a property, then make sure tenants are aware of its location and that you remember to check and replace the battery on a regular basis, as it will be no use in an emergency if the battery is dead. Likewise, when you check the smoke alarm, make a point of checking any fire extinguishers of fire blankets as well, to ensure they are still in tip top condition and ready to be used if an emergency fire situation occurs.

If  fire safety issues are a concern to you, then local building inspectors and fire prevention officers should be able to provide you with help and advice. Before you let a property for the first time, and even between lets, you may want to consider having a fire risk assessment carried out, to ensure all areas are sufficiently covered and that fire safety prevention is up-to-date.

The idea of buy-to-let is pretty self-explanatory – you buy a property at a good price and let it out to tenants, giving you a regular income on the property. Not only that, but the hope is that when you come to sell, the property will have risen in value, giving you a tidy profit. It might sound easy – and this has surely tempted many people to have a go at buying-to-let – but it’s not always as simple as that.

For example, there’s the small matter of finding the right property to buy and getting it at an affordable price. Any old property won’t do – you have to select the right type of property, in the right area and market it towards the right type of people in order to stand a chance of being successful. If you get any of these factors wrong, you may find yourself stuck with a property that you can’t rent out, which will be costing you money. This is the point at which many hopeful, or amateur landlords, get disheartened and give up on the idea.

Serious investors, however, are usually more aware of the importance of market factors and, in theory, should have done more research before purchasing a buy-to-let property. They’re not immune from the odd buy-to-let purchase mistake, but are usually more prepared to learn from their mistakes and move on to the next investment.

As well as describing a type of property purchase, the term buy-to-let is often used for a type of mortgage option. In the height of the property surge, buy-to-let mortgages were very widely available, with many great deals available to tempt people. Although still an option, the choices have somewhat narrowed, but this has helped weed out the ‘having a go’ investors, and given more room to the serious buy-to-let property investors.

Related Posts

A to Z of Property Investing: A is for Appreciation

Energy Performance Certificates became a legal requirement for residential landlords in October 2008. They have to be obtained before you begin marketing your property for rent and, if you fail to do so, then you could end up being fined £200 by Trading Standards.

The Energy Performance Certificate provides a rating about how energy efficient your property is. It uses a rating system from A to G, with A being the most energy efficient, and G the least efficient; the average level is about D. You’ll need to have your property looked at by an energy assessor and, as well as providing your rating and certificate, they will provide ideas for how you can make your property more energy efficient (you don’t have to take these ideas up, but it can be useful if energy efficiency is a concern).

In fact, research suggests that tenants are becoming more concerned about environmental issues, the cost of household bills and the impact a building has on the environment, so the extra advice may help you make practical steps to improve the overall efficiency of your property and make it more desirable to tenants.

Find more about how to go about getting an EPC. Once you’ve obtained your EPC, it’s valid for 10 years and you can take the next step towards advertising your property for let.