Property Advice

Letting isn’t as simple as ringing up a website and asking for your property to be listed. You need to advertise in the right place, choose the right, qualified agent and know your target market. It’s vital to know your legal obligations to make sure you don’t accidentally fall foul of landlord regulations. You also need to reference prospective tenants and ensure any deposit is protected through a government licensed deposit scheme. Read these 12 easy steps to ensure you let your property legally and successfully first time around!

Is a property you own an HMO? It probably is if there are 3 or more unrelated people living there as at least 2 separate households and they share basic amenities (Kitchen & Bathroom). HMOs range from houses split into separate bedsits to shared accommodation for students. When determining an HMO project location, look at the target market, transport links and supply and demand situation. In terms of finance you need to think about gross yield vs net yield and ask yourself is your broker FCA regulated, a full member of the NACFB and an experienced HMO landlord? Use our helpful guide to investigate the best way to secure finance for an HMO.

You need proper, expert advice when financing a Buy to Let investment, so don’t rely on web based research as most buy to let mortgages are only available through an experienced mortgage broker face to face. Is your broker a Buy to Let specialist? Do they know about Houses in Multiple Occupation? Bridging Finance and other help you might need? Do they understand what you need to do to make your property legally let and have case studies of other landlords they have helped?

Letting a property has both pros and cons, especially if it’s your home and you are only planning to do so temporarily. You can make money, offer housing to the needy and using a NALS approved agent that can reduce renting anxiety and problems. However, upfront costs can be quickly add up as there are over 145 rules and regulation you and your property will need to abide by, as well as dealing with potential unruly tenants.

You don’t want to jump head first into the BTL world without being adequately prepared. Objectives, time and research are key for your Buy to Let investment. What yields do you need? Do you have an exit strategy? What sort of mortgage finance will you require? These are the sort of questions you will need to get answers to before starting your Buy to Let portfolio.

Once you know what you want from an investment it’s all about research, research, research! Use the right experts to help you work out if you are about to buy a great investment or a bad one. Get the most out of your Buy to Let project by knowing your costs before you commit, whether its taxes, maintenance or other expenditure you didn’t know you will incur!