Landlords - Are You Ready for the Winter?

This article by Stride on September 4th, 2013 covers how landlords should be ready for winter and check if their properties are still in good state and repair in the col weather.

Autumn is upon us with the temperatures cooling down and evenings closing in, it's the ideal time for landlords to check their properties are ready for the winter months.

Properties need to be in a good state of repair and able to cope with the rigours of the cold weather, while tenants may start to look elsewhere for somewhere to live if they find the house an unpleasantly cold one to live in, or too expensive to heat if bills are not included in the rent.

There are several steps that a landlord can take to ensure the home is ready for the colder weeks and months ahead, both on the inside and out.

Guttering is one area that needs looking at, not least as wind, rain and falling autumn leaves can turn a gutter or downpipe into a disaster area. Overflowing can cause water to seep into brickwork and stone, damaging this and causing damp. So these channels should be checked to ensure they are in good order and not blocked. In addition to this, check if any of the mortar is cracked, as this will only widen in the cold and wet.

Other outdoor problems can include blockages with rubbish, which can cause flooding, along with potential plant damage. This can include small things like moss growing in cracks. This needs removing and the cracks filling in, as the process of freeze-thaw can widen these through the natural effects of expansion and contraction.

Larger vegetation problems can include trees, where it is important to check that there are no branches that might fall in inclement weather. Not only do these pose a threat to life, limb and property, but they may also be a visual irritant to neighbours. Root problems should also be dealt with, although only in an emergency should the tree be felled.

Alongside the risk of damp, cold is a key issue that will drive tenants away and put prospective new ones off. It is important to ensure the roof tiles are all in place and loft insulation is a good way of keeping heat in. On snowy days it is easy to tell which homes have this. While some have white roofs, others are clear of the stuff and may have birds perching on them to keep their feet warm.

Insulation is also something that should be fitted in cavity walls, unless the house lacks these. Insulating a home is not expensive and will help slash energy bills.

Draughts are another issue too. It is no use having insulation to stop heat escaping through the walls or roof if it has an easy way out through a gap at the bottom of the door, or a loose window fitting.

Having a home that is warm and well-insulated means less chance of burst water pipes, cold homes and those living within suffering from poor health. By keeping a home snug and warm, it will instead offer tenants a haven they will enjoy retreating to in winter and prevent expensive repair bills that could have been avoided with better preparation.

Article Source: http://www.stride.co.uk/insurance-news-and-articles/commercial-insurance-articles/property-insurance/landlords-are-you-ready-for-the-winter-/176/

UK Property Firm Reports Surge in Interest from Australian Investors

PRWeb on August 20, 2013 reveals Knight Know international's interest has extended it's reach into the outback after seeing the high demands in the UK property market from Australian investors.

After selling properties in Asia, the Far East and The Middle East, Knight Knox International has now extended its reach into the outback, after seeing an upsurge in the amount of interest in the UK property market from Australian investors. 

Following the Knight Knox International’s exhibition team’s first ever attendance at an Australian property exhibition, the North West investment firm can report that interest from Australia is indeed high, after taking over 89 enquiries in the three-day show.

Two main factors are being identified as the reason for this upsurge. The first of which is the costly nature of the Australian property market which freezes out many of its own home-grown investors.

Identified in the 2013 Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey as the third most unaffordable major market, properties across Australia continue to experience rises in price.

So much in fact, that the house price index for 8 major cities in Australia rose by 2.6% during Q1 2013, with a surge of 8% in properties in Darwin, an upscale of 6.1% in Perth and a rise of 3.6% in Sydney, according to the Australian bureau of statistics.

The second reason behind this rise in Australian investment is the continuing depreciation of the Australian dollar causing many to put their money in UK Stirling and property, allowing them to both secure their funds and gain financial rewards.

The value of the Australian dollar has been dipping dramatically since April, with the IMF reporting that the dollar has depreciated by around 10% since; this is just one of a series of major drops the dollar has experienced, it also fell by about 7 per cent between May and mid-June and falls such as this, are another reason behind the upsurge in interest in the UK property market.

Alasdair Mcdonald, a member of the Knight Knox International exhibitions team spoke of the rising interest from Australian investors, which he saw direct evidence of at the Sydney Homebuyer and International Property Investor Show.

Alasdair commented: “When discussing potential investment options with Australian investors their true feelings come to the fore, they expressed that there is no country that they would prefer to invest in more than the UK because of the security and also because they are investing in pounds sterling, as well as generating a steadily increasing income on the net rental side. Also as an overseas investor they will be paying zero capital gains tax and be taxed considerably less on their rental.”

The Knight Knox International Exhibitions Team will continue exhibiting on the team's first visit to Australia on August 23rd at the Homebuyer & Property Investor Show, Melbourne.
Investors are urged to come along to the three day event which comes to a close on the 25th of August, to take advantage of exclusive offers the team will be offering in the UK buy-to-let and student accommodation market at the event.

 Article Source: http://www.prweb.com/releases/2013/8/prweb11027188.htm

A First-Timer’s Guide to Buying in a Bubble

According to Rosamund Urwin of The London Evening Standard, young Londoners are obliged to take the plunge in an overheated housing market because rents are rising as shown on this August 14th, 2013 article.

The bubble is back. In the past year, house prices have jumped by 8.1 per cent in London, hitting another record high. The average home in the capital now costs £425,000. It’s as though Northern Rock, the eurozone crisis and econo-mageddon were just a bad dream.

And it isn’t just affluent foreigners piling in and driving up prices. Even first-time buyers are now returning to the market. The number of Londoners clambering on to the bottom rung of the property ladder almost doubled in the first four months of 2013 compared with a year earlier, many trying to escape rocketing rents. In June, the number of first-time buyers given mortgages across the UK was the highest since 2007.

Hopefully, I’ll soon be one of them. For after a nine-month search — long enough to spawn a book or a baby — I’ve finally found a flat, a small split-level jobbie in Brixton — four rooms of my own. Searching for a first home has been a spirit-sapping affair. I’ve been led on and stood up by a handsome gent (an estate agent). I’ve experienced the spitting hatred that a Foxtons Mini inspires. I’ve traipsed around smoke-clogged Hobbit holes, flats infused with damp and an apartment decorated with wet pants on every radiator. Thus, I have come to pity anyone who has ever searched for a home in London. 

In an ideal world, Generation Rent’s problems would be solved by a boost to the supply side. More homes would be built. But — as the French writer Voltaire would verify — we do not live in the best of all possible worlds. In fact, new figures released today show that the number of properties listed for sale in London for under £500,000 has fallen by 7.5 per cent between April and June compared with the same period last year. Meanwhile, the number over £500,000 has shot up.

And gone are the days when the “3Ds” (debt, death and divorce) offered a property panacea through repossessions and auctions. The developers and speculators cottoned on to those ages ago and they’re likely to be savvier than first-time buyers and to have more experience and deeper pockets.

So how on earth, in this ruinous market, can one find a first place to buy, without either marrying a billionaire or being blessed with a big bounty from the Bank of Mum and Dad?

Location, location, location

Turn Kirstie Allsopp’s mantra on its head. Yes, location is all — but in the sense that you should put aside all postcode prejudices to find a home. Having lived in one area best known for an eponymous spliff (Camberwell), another unfairly famous for crime (Peckham) and a third no one has ever heard of (Nunhead), I’d recommend forgetting all snobby ideas about addresses. Pick somewhere residents refer to as “up-and-coming” (they mean “currently run-down”) or one where they play classical music in the nearest Tube station to try to prevent locals punching each other.

Henry Pryor, a buying agent and housing commentator, advises looking east. But he also says the areas hit by riots two summers ago — Tottenham, Enfield, Peckham — can offer cheaper pickings: “People are snooty and memories linger so values in those places have been reined in. And don’t be shy about commuting either — we do have a good transport network.”

He points to areas around the outskirts, such as Headstone South in Harrow, Morden and Nonsuch in Sutton. Other property watchers suggest Walthamstow and Forest Hill. Or, as one property pessimist suggests: “Look for a place where no one else wants to live.”

Location, location, location part II

Another obvious option (not recommended for light sleepers) is to buy above a shop or on a main road — the noise keeps the cost down. Stockpile ear plugs and accept that it will put many future buyers off (then again, contrary to the attitudes of many Londoners, you’re buying somewhere to live in and not an investment). And there are always ex-council houses. Pryor reckons most new builds — with their typically low ceilings and small rooms — should be avoided, though: “A developer is selling a commodity and so they will need to take their cut. And like a used car losing value as you drive out of the showroom, a new home loses value as soon as you put the kettle on.” It also pays to get to know an area really well.

Negotiate

Pryor recommends “overcoming the British reserve” and haggling: “An asking price is a guide to the vendor’s greed. It does not reflect the actual value of a property.” He points out that asking prices have risen much more than selling prices in the past year. And first-time buyers, not being shackled to another buyer, are popular with sellers. They can capitalise on that and offer less. It pays to be a property stalker too. Find out how long a home has been on the market, how many times the price has been reduced and what similar properties in the area have sold for. The magical interweb is your friend here.

Beware the estate agent

Estate agents, lovely though one per cent may be, represent the seller. Although it’s a good idea to tell them clearly what you are after (otherwise you will have to sift through scores of emails with completely inappropriate options) and probably even to flatter them (they may alert you to new properties coming on the market), don’t tell them how desperate you are to move to a certain area — and don’t give away your life story.

“The shiny-suited estate agent in a branded Mini is not a broker but an agent,” says Pryor. “They will use the information against you. Act as though they have some contagious disease that you wouldn’t want to catch.”

Be proactive

Most properties, even in London, sit on the market for a while but a dream home can sell very swiftly in the current climate. A two-bedroom flat I liked appeared on Rightmove on a Wednesday and buyers had to submit sealed bids by Friday lunchtime. This can turn searching into a social-life-destroying nightmare but it’s worth putting in the hours. You can also take the mission into your own hands. One couple looking for a home in Herne Hill leafleted the area, asking residents if they were interested in selling. This isn’t a bad idea: the vendor benefits from cutting out hefty estate agent fees and a quick sale. However, the couple are yet to hear from a single interested party.

Borrow, beg, team-up, take

In the words of the Evening Standard’s property correspondent Mira Bar-Hillel: “Take as much from the Government as they are stupid enough to give you and extort as much from your family as you can.” For those for whom the vaults at the Bank of Mum and Dad sit empty, George Osborne is here to help.

Yes, the Chancellor’s Help-to-Buy scheme (offering loans to wannabe owners with only a five per cent deposit) has been called “one of the most stupid economic ideas of the past 30 years” by a leading City strategist but when it is extended to all properties in January next year you might as well take advantage of it.

“The Government is clearly determined to ramp up the housing market for the next three to five years but we’re talking about subsidised home ownership here — first-time buyers would be mad not to use it,” says Pryor.

Shared ownership schemes through housing associations are another option but while you get the responsibilities and the liabilities you obviously don’t get full ownership. It can also be difficult to increase your share and difficult to sell on. Another option is to find someone who will buy a percentage of the house as an investment — but this can be legally complicated.

Emily Jupp: SHOULD I PURCHASE A PLOT WITH PALS?

I vacillate constantly about what would make my dream home. In the past month alone, I’ve been fixated on a school conversion in Peckham Rye, which, after doing my sums, I realised that I could afford if I sold a few family members into slavery (I’m sure they’d forgive me once they saw the shine on those lovely polished floorboards).

I was also desperate to buy land in Brockley (I’ve seen those Channel 4 programmes about DIY homes, so I’m going into this with my eyes wide open). Currently, I’m ever so keen to invest in a not-quite-condemned two-bed flat in a not very salubrious area of Zone 2, which estate agents keep telling me I won’t be able to get a mortgage on because it is deemed “unsafe” by the surveyors. Bah. I reckon they’re just trying to put me off because they want to keep that little gem to themselves.

To summarise, house-hunting on a budget is a quagmire of confusion. But there are options. I’ve discovered that buying a tatty, ex-council high-rise near Canada Water would actually be a very good investment and probably not an act of blatant idiocy, by comparing property prices in the area. Zoopla’s heatmaps tool (zoopla.co.uk/heatmaps) tells you the average property prices across the UK. You can drill down to look at one particular borough or street, so you can compare prices.

If you have a decent deposit and cope well with anxiety, buying up land could reap rewards but be warned — land in London is obviously rare and you will be up against property developers who do this for a living. In the course of investigating this possibility, I discovered that anyone can apply for planning permission on land, whether they own it or not. Do this to see whether you can build on it before you take the leap and buy it up.

Finally, last weekend, a friend tentatively offered to buy a place with me. My concerns were that we wouldn’t want the same things and that the stress of being financially tied together might make us hate each other. But on reflection, we’ve lived together before and got on well and it would mean I wouldn’t have to live in a slum. Strangely, though, part of me relishes the challenge of turning a crumbling wreck into something beautiful —  and all mine.

Richard Godwin: WHY I BOUGHT ABOVE A SHOP

When my wife and I started house-hunting a few months ago, we were under few illusions. I figured that although it would be lovely if we could find an affordable, comfortable two-bedroom flat with a garden on a quiet street within five minutes’ walk of a Zone 2 Tube, it was also unlikely. So I was happy to consider all options, including an unpromising-looking place above a shop.

On the minus side, it was actually on Green Lanes, the  busy Harringay high street of Turkish restaurants and thundering buses. On the plus side, it was full of windows, elegantly proportioned in grand Victorian style (it was purpose-built as a flat rather than clumsily converted), in pretty good condition, near the park and the Tube and … drum-roll … had an almost unheard of three bedrooms. We made an offer within a couple of hours and, dull-story short, moved in last Friday.

I still feel that we’ve totally lucked out. I love the extra space — far more than I thought we could afford — and the neighbourhood. The noise disappears when you shut the windows — when they’re open, you just pretend you’re on holiday in Istanbul. And it’s just exciting to be so much in the thick of it. Why else do you live in a city?

Article Source: http://www.standard.co.uk/lifestyle/london-life/a-firsttimers-guide-to-buying-in-a-bubble-8760730.html