Buy to Let Tips in 500 Words by LettingFocus.com

Someone asked me what my five very top tips for success in buy to let are and would I mind summarizing the main things to do / not do in fewer than 500 words. So here goes….

One - Always buy in the right area and the right type of property at a good (i.e. low) price and buy where tenant demand REALLY exists. And check tenant demand exists BEFORE you buy. In most places you should avoid new build flats as they seldom keep their value, especially the developments where most flats have been bought by other landlords and / or are on huge estates full of the same kind of identikit flats and / or where the arrangements to manage the land around the property and the structure are weak. Look out for and buy into areas that are REALLY getting regeneration money, new employment or better transport. Preferably, all three.

Two – Avoid all Get Rich Quick in Property exhortations and / or anyone who uses phrases like “financial freedom” or “no money down.” Be very wary of the types of lease options scheme where the tenant-cum buyer buys a lease from you to purchase a property from you in the future. We think they are at best unethical and we don’t think they will stand up to legal scrutiny in the future either. We also expect them to be banned just as soon as the FSA wakes up to them – which given their usual speed won't be for another three to five years at best.

The fact is you can get rich in property but it is not something you can do fast and if you cannot afford to invest without resorting to weird and strange financing / cash flow techniques then think hard about if you should not be in the property investing / landlord game at all.

Three – Don’t simply trust to a letting agent to do thorough reference checks on tenants for you. YOU need to make sure they have done the proper checks. If you skip this advice you will eventually get a tenant from hell. Trust me on this!

So, make clear to the agent what tenants you want and don’t want and ask to see all references and retain a veto if they aren’t good enough. Don’t pay over one months rent to an agent to find a tenant for you and NEVER pay renewal charges if all the agent does is find a tenant for you. Even better, find a tenant yourself for about £50. See our Services and Products for Landlords page.

Four – Be nice to tenants. Fix things fast, be available during working hours (within reason) and don’t be mean and sweat small pennies. Offer competitive rents to good tenants – i.e. one that’s a bit below the market average. Never forget, good tenants are worth getting and keeping! If you operate in “specialty sectors” like HMOS, students or “Benefit Tenants” you’ll need to do extra swotting up and make sure you know what you should be doing, stay within the law and get paid.

Five – As a landlord you have legal responsibilities - sorry but the days of Rigbsyesque “muddling through” are long gone. So, understand the law or risk getting fined. Have a good filing system and keep a sense of humour!

Lazy Journalism

It being the end of the tax year, I see the personal finance press was full of ISA stories at the weekend. But the best rate you can get on money tucked away for a year is actually from the National Savings and Investments (that’s the government) whose Index linked certificates are paying 1% above the RPI inflation rate. That means they are currently paying 4.7% and it is tax free. I have not seen a one year term ISA or a non ISA rate that beats that.

Too bad pretty well all the journalists that wrote about ISAs were copying from press releases from bank and building societies and were just too lazy to check out the NS&I rates.

MORE ABOUT LETTINGFOCUS AND WHAT WE DO

LettingFocus.com is the home of landlord information.

I’m David Lawrenson, a landlord and property investor myself for over 25 years and author of “Successful Property Letting” – the UK’s top selling commercially published property book for the last 3 years.

Services to Businesses and the Public Sector

Primarily I am a consultant to banks, local authorities, social housing providers and other organisations – helping them with their landlord facing or buy to let product strategies and services.

For example, I help banks improve their buy to let mortgage lending practices and I help housing association / local authorities find private landlords (private rented access schemes, local letting agency models etc.)
I also write for property websites and am regularly quoted by the broadcast media.

Services for Private Landlords

For private landlords and other investors in the private rented sector, we do just two London seminars each year.
We also find some spare time to help landlords and property investors by coaching them in how to make money in the private rented sector using ways that work, which are ethical, fair to tenants and which involve minimal risk to the investor.
We pride ourselves on giving independent unbiased buy to let advice on either a one-to-one mentoring / coaching basis or through our occasional group seminars. With no links to property firms, developers or bridging loan providers we can advise on where and what type of property to buy for investment and when to buy it. We also show you how to manage tenants properly.

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Copyright of Blog: David Lawrenson 2009. This blog is updated roughly once a week usually on a Monday or Tuesday.

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“Financial Freedom” or “Passive Income” via property. If you see these words, leave the room says LettingFocus.com

One of the nicest back handed compliments I get is the fact that when one searches for LettingFocus or David Lawrenson on Google one gets a load of sponsored ad results appearing at the top of the search results and down the side.
These sponsored links are usually slightly shaded in on the windows internet browser.
For those who are uninitiated in the black arts of search engines, what’s happened here is that other companies have bought google adwords for “David Lawrenson” and “LettingFocus.com” so that every time someone searches for those words on Google, that companies sponsored (advert) entry comes up too.
It will cost them X number of pence every time someone clicks on one of their entries.
There is nothing illegal about them doing this. Well, not unless one has trademarked one’s name, possibly.
These firms do it because they have no worthwhile content of their own on their sites, so have to piggy back off the likes of real experts.
Actually, it is all a bit of a waste of money for them as about 70% of people never click on sponored search results, preferring instead to click on results that have been earned on merit in the organic (non-paid for, non-sponsored) search engine results – where I come pretty near the top anyway for these search terms.
Actually I was quite pleased that even more of these duff property firms are trying to “bum” off the back of my name than they are for TV property personalities like Gary Mclausland or Sarah Beeney.
A real back handed compliment.
But I’m not alone. The names of other respected property people like Tessa Shepperson and Richard Bowser are similarly targeted by these guys who have bought google adwords for their names too.

FINANCIAL FREEDOM WHILST SITTING ON THE LOO
Now, one of the enduring features of many of these companies is that they always have a teaser free course – available for a limited period only, natch.
And they are always giving out gifts allegedly worth £X thousand pounds – only available for the next few days, of course.
They often have a chap or lady with a smooth sales patter and good looks appearing on a video.
But most of all they promise you financial freedom with a passive property income within a few months just by going on their course.
So, no more daily grind to work to a boring job, getting stuck in traffic or under someones sweaty arm on the tube… become a property millionaire in a year, blah blah.
Just sit back, do nothing at all and watch the rent roll in.
Oh, and if anyone tells you it’s not that easy (i.e. real people like me, I guess) and that you are wasting time and your £6,000 signing up for their course, you should ignore them as people like me are negative and NOT TO BE LISTENED to.
I think the Moonies and the like used similar tactics.
Not all the companies that have paid for google adwords using my name do this, but a lot do.
For the record, I have no links with any of the companies who have paid for sponsored search results under my name or the term “LettingFocus”
And if you have lost money as a result of going with a property company like one of the ones I have described here and you would like it featured in the press, please let me know and we will pass it on to interested journalists in the press or on TV.
ABOUT LETTINGFOCUS.COM and DAVID LAWRENSON
I’m David Lawrenson of LettingFocus.com - the property letting experts. Read Landlords Articles.
I’m the author of “Successful Property Letting” which for the last 3 years has been the UK’s top selling property book - buy Landlords Book.
The new edition is for accidental and experienced landlords and is fully up to date with all the recent changes to tenancy deposit schemes, HMOs, licensing, capital gains taxes and it has new sections on sale and rent back.
I’m an expert property writer and property speaker - and I run the well known landlords blog that you are reading now.
I contribute to newspapers and a host of property websites, write a number of columns in the press and I provide general property letting advice and consulting to anyone looking to buy property for themselves or to let out. I can help private individuals with any aspect of buying property or buy to let.
What’s unique about lettingfocus.com is that we are independent property investment advisors because unlike most people in the buy to let and property “advice” business we are not linked to a property company, developer, agent or bridging loan financier and do not receive commissions from these sources.
We simply give one to one unbiased advice and are often asked to evaluate other property investments.
Find out about some great deals we have arranged at our Landlords Links page.
Copyright: David Lawrenson 2009. This blog is updated roughly once a week.
WANT TO BE KEPT UPDATED WITH OUR LATEST BLOGS?
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Over on the right hand side under all the previous blog entries and the bit where it says “Links” and “Subscribe” you will see a button saying “Site Feed.”
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Please note if you have a website & are thinking of reproducing material here - that’s fine but we DO require the full links shown in each blog to be included, including also the links in this section. The full article including all links must be available to ALL VIEWERS of your site and not restricted to members.
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If you see the words “Financial Freedom” or “Passive Income” you should leave now says Lawrenson of Letting Focus

One of the nicest back handed compliments I get is the fact that when one searches for LettingFocus or David Lawrenson on Google, one gets a load of sponsored ad results appearing at the top of the search results and down the side.
These sponsored links are usually slightly shaded in on the windows internet browser.
For those who are uninitiated in the black arts of search engines, what’s happened here is that other companies have bought google adwords for “David Lawrenson” and “LettingFocus.com” so that every time someone searches for those words on Google, that companies sponsored (advert) entry comes up too.
It will cost them X number of pence every time someone clicks on one of their entries.
There is nothing illegal about them doing this. Well, not unless one has trademarked one’s name, possibly.
These firms do it because they have no worthwhile content of their own on their sites, so have to piggy back off the likes of real property experts.
Actually, it is all a bit of a waste of money for them as about 70% of people never click on sponored search results, preferring instead to click on results that have been earned on merit in the organic (non-paid for, non-sponsored) search engine results – where I come pretty near the top anyway for these search terms.
Actually I was quite pleased that even more of these duff property firms are trying to “bum” off the back of my name than they are for TV property personalities like Gary Mclausland or Sarah Beeney. A real back handed compliment.
But I’m not alone. The names of other respected property people like Tessa Shepperson and Richard Bowser are similarly targeted by these guys who have bought google adwords for their names too.

FINANCIAL FREEDOM WHILST SITTING ON THE LOO
Now, one of the enduring features of some of these companies is that they always have a teaser free course – available for a limited period only, natch.
And they are always giving out gifts allegedly worth £X thousand pounds – only available for the next few days and if you sign up now, of course.
They often have a chap or lady with a smooth sales patter and good looks appearing on a video.
But most of all they promise you financial freedom with a passive property income within a few months just by going on their course.
So, no more daily grind to work to a boring job, getting stuck in traffic or under someones sweaty arm on the tube… become a property millionaire in a year, blah blah.
Just sit back, do nothing at all and watch the rent roll in.
Oh, and if anyone tells you it’s not that easy (i.e. real people like me, I guess) and that you are wasting time and your £6,000 signing up for their course, you should ignore them as people like me are negative and NOT TO BE LISTENED to.
I think the Moonies and the like used similar tactics.
Not all the companies that have paid for google adwords using my name do this, but a lot do.
So, for the record, I have no links with any of the companies who have paid for sponsored search results under my name or using the term “LettingFocus”
And if you have lost money as a result of going with a property company like one of the ones I have described here and you would like it featured in the press, please let me know and we will pass it on to interested journalists in the press or on TV.
ABOUT LETTINGFOCUS.COM and DAVID LAWRENSON
I’m David Lawrenson of LettingFocus.com - the property letting experts. Read Landlords Articles.
I’m the author of “Successful Property Letting” which for the last 3 years has been the UK’s top selling property book - buy Landlords Book.
The new edition is for accidental and experienced landlords and is fully up to date with all the recent changes to tenancy deposit schemes, HMOs, licensing, capital gains taxes and it has new sections on sale and rent back.
I’m an expert property writer and property speaker - and I run the well known landlords blog that you are reading now.
I contribute to newspapers and a host of property websites, write a number of columns in the press and I provide general property letting advice and consulting to anyone looking to buy property for themselves or to let out. I can help private individuals with any aspect of buying property or buy to let.
What’s unique about lettingfocus.com is that we are independent property investment advisors because unlike most people in the buy to let and property “advice” business we are not linked to a property company, developer, agent or bridging loan financier and do not receive commissions from these sources.
We simply give one to one unbiased advice and are often asked to evaluate other property investments.
Find out about some great deals we have arranged at our Landlords Links page.
Copyright: David Lawrenson 2009. This blog is updated roughly once a week.
WANT TO BE KEPT UPDATED WITH OUR LATEST BLOGS?
It’s easy.
Over on the right hand side under all the previous blog entries and the bit where it says “Links” and “Subscribe” you will see a button saying “Site Feed.”
You simply copy the site feed link into your News Reader or News Aggregator. Even a non techie like me managed to do this.
Please note if you have a website & are thinking of reproducing material here - that’s fine but we DO require the full links shown in each blog to be included, including also the links in this section. The full article including all links must be available to ALL VIEWERS of your site and not restricted to members.
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“WHAT ARE WE FIGHTING FOR? FINANCIAL FREEDOM” SAYS LAWRENSON OF LETTING FOCUS. PLUS, GOING UNDERCOVER TO CHECK OUT THE PROPERTY SCAMS.

One of my favourite TV comedy skits is the one of “Braveheart” by Jennifer Saunder and Dawn French.
In it Jennifer Saunders does a great immitation of Mel Gibson in the film “Braveheart” by mumbling numerous times “We’re fighting for freedom” in a curious part Scottish part Aussie accent.
Well, if I see another property company advertising a “Get Rich Quick in Property” deal with a byline containing something about people “Achieving their Financial Freedom” I think I might explode.
On the subject of property scammers, I’ve just been contacted by a journalist who has been going undercover to expose the property scamsters for a big piece soon to appear in one of the national papers.
Interestingly she came incognito to one of my own London seminars but I’m pleased to say she quickly found out I’m one of the guys in the white hats.
So, she called me to own up for that and to ask my profesional opinion on some of the scams for the article, which of course I am delighted to do. They will appear when the piece is published in a week or so - and we will bring it to you here.
Sadly, she observed that the majority of the people who went to the various seminars she attended did not own their own house and few seemed to have much money to scrape together. Mixing with other attendees round the coffee pot at these seminars she found that most had a low level of education and were financially quite naive.
However, lots of them bought into the guff about “Achieving Their Financial Freedom” and were prepared to hand over what little cash they had for a seminar to a firm that would probably buy them a duff flat that would prove hard to rent out and show little capital gain.
Meanwhile the promoters will earn a nice slice from the various fees -for mortgages, leads, introducing solicitors and the like – and in some cases get a nice cut from a developer.
It is high time this was stopped by regulation.

CRISIS WHAT CRISIS ASK THE PEOPLE OF CARDIFF
Just back from a few days staying on a farmhouse near my old stamping ground at Cardiff where I was at University many moons ago.
I see that in the last few days the financial clouds have lifted which is interesting because I sometimes think the reality does not fit the facts.
Clearly, the finanical sevices sector has taken a bash and London is looking a wee bit sad. Fair enough.
But no one has told the good people of South Wales that we are facing economic armageddon.
You see, I love to walk around the sites of my old uni town - have my pic taken outside my old house in Woodville Road where I nearly froze to death in 1981, get the security guard to let me and my mates into my old hall to have my pic taken outside my old room etc.
But in the end we left the city centre early. The reason – it was just too full, too jammed with shoppers.
Business is booming there which gets me wondering if our London-centric press is all too downhearted about the grimness in the capital to bother to look at what’s happening in the rest of the UK?
The Welsh have always had a party streak about them and some of them really do “live for today”
But on the evidence of Cardiff last weekend, we are definitely not about to drop to our knees in depression and cut back our spending.
So don’t be too downhearted - the South Walians are certainly not.
ABOUT LETTINGFOCUS.COM and DAVID LAWRENSON
I’m David Lawrenson of LettingFocus.com - landlord experts.
I’m the author of “Successful Property Letting” which for the last 3 years has been the UK’s top selling property title - Buy Successful Property Letting - How to Make Money in Buy to Let.
The new edition is fully up to date with all the recent changes to tenancy deposit schemes, HMOs, licensing, capital gains taxes and it has new sections on sale and rent back.
I’m an expert freelance property journalist, property speaker and a well known buy to let blogger
I contribute to newspapers and a host of property websites, write a number of columns in the press and I provide general property education, training & advice for anyone looking to buy property for themselves or to let out.
In my work as a consultant I help private individuals with any aspect of buying property or buy to let. What’s unique about lettingfocus.com is that we are independent property mentors because unlike most people in the buy to let and property “advice” business we are not linked to a property company, developer, agent or bridging loan financier and do not receive commissions from any of these sources.
We simply give one to one unbiased advice and are often asked to evaluate other property investments.
In my corporate consulting role, I also advise banks, building societies, housing associations and web portals with their buy to let and property products and services.
You can read more of my blog & find details of my networking, advice and property training programme at my website.Copyright: David Lawrenson 2008. This blog is updated once a week.
WANT TO BE KEPT UPDATED WITH OUR LATEST BLOGS?
It’s easy.
Go to the bottom of this post, and click on “Link to this post”
Our home blog page should then open & you should then see my smiling profile. Then page all the way down and on the bottom right it will say “Site feed” - click there and away you go.
You then just copy the link that comes up into your News Reader or News Aggregator. Even a non techie like me managed to do all this.
Please note if you have a website & are thinking of reproducing material here - that’s fine but we DO require the full links shown in each blog to be included including also the links in the section “ABOUT LETTINGFOCUS.COM and DAVID LAWRENSON”
Please Contact Us button at our main site http://www.lettingfocus.com/ if you have any queries about this.

Another property club has just hit the buffers says Letting Focus

I was trying to understand the psychology of the "Get Rich Quick in Property" offers by getting some of the property clubs marketing material together.
What I found was 3 common themes.
First up, was “Sign up and achieve your “financial freedom” (Sub message - No more crowding on the tube to get to a lousy job working for a boss who is Satan in disguise)
Second, Get lots of freebies and bonus gifts if you sign up NOW. And you will want to sign up now won’t you because you are a winner not a loser, right?
Third, don’t listen to any friends who say you are daft to spend £X,000 on a course – unlike you, they are losers. (This neatly anticipates the objections of friends and family.)
This all came to mind because a very worried chap called me last night to say that the phone number of the “armchair property investing” company that he has £11,000 outstanding with (to source and buy properties for him) has been disconnected and the owners cannor be contacted.
Oh dear!
Remember, if you MUST invest in this way, for goodness sake check how your money will be protected. And if an independent lawyer / accountant says it is not safe, then you will be on your own. Remember, property investment and property clubs are NOT protected by the FSA.
I excpect a rash of these firms going bust as a result of the credit crunch.
Clearly, it is high time there was a degree of protection against the worst excesses of the bad property clubs.
If you are a journalist reading this, please contact me for more information about the firm in question.
ABOUT LETTINGFOCUS.COM and DAVID LAWRENSON
I’m David Lawrenson of property experts’ lettingfocus.com.
I’m the author of “Successful Property Letting - How to Make Money in Buy to Let” which for the last 3 years has been the UK’s top selling property title - buy the UK's top selling landlord book.
It is fully up to date with all the recent changes to tenancy deposit schemes, HMOs, licensing, capital gains taxes and it has new sections on buying property below market value.
I’m an expert property journalist, property speaker and a well known buy to let blogger
I contribute to newspapers and a host of property websites, write a number of columns in the press and I provide general property investment advice
I also work as a consultant helping banks, building societies, housing associations and web portals with their buy to let and property products and services and am a regular speaker at property shows.
You can read more of my blog & find details of my networking, advice, property training programme at my website.What’s unique about lettingfocus.com is that we offer you help as an independent landlords' mentor because unlike most people in the buy to let and property “advice” business we are not linked to a property company, a developer, an agent or bridging loan financier and do not receive commissions from any of these sources.
We offer one to one advice and are often asked to evaluate other property investments. Copyright: David Lawrenson 2008. This blog is updated once a week.
WANT TO BE KEPT UPDATED WITH OUR LATEST BLOGS?
It’s easy.
Go to the bottom of this post, and click on “Link to this post”
Our home blog page should then open & you should then see my smiling profile. Then page all the way down and on the bottom right it will say “Site feed” - click there and away you go.
You then just copy the link that comes up into your News Reader or News Aggregator. Even a non techie like me managed to do all this.
Please note if you are thinking of reproducing material here - that’s fine but we DO require the full links shown in each blog to be included including also the links in the section “ABOUT LETTINGFOCUS.COM and DAVID LAWRENSON” Please contact us via the Contact US button at our main site http://www.lettingfocus.com/ if you have any queries about this.