Investors’ Frequently Asked Questions

We possess over 12 years of experience, knowledge and expertise in the property industry, acting as estate agents and engaged in the business of buying and selling properties to suit individual and business needs and demands. We help local people sell their properties fast and hassle-free to investors all over the world. Our objective is to find properties that are offer good yields and capital appreciation but a short and a long terms property portfolio over time so that you can exit if you so require without losing any money.

Our job as fully compliant property sourcing company is to find people great income-generating assets so that they can invest with ease. We have a huge amount of local knowledge, and we are in a good position to advise where when how from whom and what price to buy and to sell and what to avoid when offering clients deals. 

If you like a particular property deal, we can provide you with all the necessary information relating to such property so that you can conduct your own assessment and due diligence. If you so desire, we can arrange a viewing for our investors so that they can also check various aspect of the property being bought for them and can also discuss your strategy to hold on to the property. 

We can then reserve the deal for as little as £1,000. Once a property has been finalized, it will be our objective to complete the transactions as quickly as possible so that our investors start earning on such properties. 

Our team can complete all the transaction-related work and start managing the property on your behalf.

We encourage investors to get an independent valuation of the property being acquired for and on their behalf so that thy themselves can have a feel of the prices prevalent in the market. 

Generally, market prices of properties sold recently and in the past are available on property portal such as RightMove, Zoopla, OnTheMarket, Prime Location etc. Similarly latest rentals are also available on these sites. 

Besides investors can also engage independent evaluators that provide added confidence and comfort to the investors as to the range of property prices and rental yields 

Though property investments are generally one of the safest investments you can make, particularly those bought at a discounted price, it can increase the potential yield which reduces the risks to a certain degree. There is however no hiding that investment property comes with a risk, as there is with any type of investments.

Like all other investments, investing in property is also prone to risks and rewards. The fact that investors have invested in physical properties may give certain investors a higher level of comfort. However, they need to understand that there are many risks involved in investing in property that must be considered in conjunction with the expected value of the investment. Investors should evaluate and consider the implications of the following type of risk factors inherent in the property market:

1. General Market Risk 

Property market is subject to the rise and falls of the economy and factors such as interest rates, inflation, and other market trends. Investors are in position to predict or eliminate market shocks, however they can hedge against booms with a diversified portfolio and strategy based on a perception of the general market conditions. 

2. Liquidity Risk 

Generally, property investment is long term in nature, however some properties have the potential to sell like hot cakes and have a shorter horizon than most properties. However, others may not attract the same number of market participants. It might be easy to make investments to get into one property, but extremely difficult to get out of the same one creating liquidity risks.

3. Asset-type Risk 

Different type of property investment contains different type of risks. For example, there is always demand for apartments in good and bad economies, multi-family property is considered low-risk and often yields lower returns, office buildings are less sensitive to consumer demand than shopping malls, while hotels with their short, seasonal stays and reliance on business and tourism travel pose far more risk than either apartments or office. Similarly property with high value are more riskier than low value properties. The investors should consider such type of risks.

4. Credit Risk

The more there is stability in a property’s income stream, the more it is likely that investors will be willing to pay for the property because it has the potential to produce stable and more predictable income stream. As such the stability and the length of the property’s income stream drives its value. Similarly, a property leased out to a multinational for several years should fetch a much higher price than a multi-tenant office building with similar rents. 

5. Assets Specific Risk. 

Usually higher the risk, the greater the potential for gains but it also contains a higher risk of the loss of the capital invested in such property. The chances that the local authorities may not grant required approvals, as envisaged, to allow the project to proceed as planned. Construction adds risk to a project because it limits the capacity for collecting rents during the construction phase. Properties may be affected by environment conditions that may affect their value adversely. Location of the property also has an incidence on the price of the value. Sometimes properties that require some form of construction before they are ready to sell also involve other types of risk than just the construction risk. Budgets, political situations, workforce risks and construction overruns can also affect the property prices.   

6. Replacement Assets risk.

A new property constructed next to your property might make your older property obsolete because a better facility with comparable rates has entered the market. For an investor it may not be possible to raise rents, or even attain acceptable occupancy rates. If your old property is fetching leases at rates that would justify new constructions, competitors may come up with new dwellings. As such investors may find it challenging to raise rents or maintain occupancy in such building.

7. Leveraging Risk. 

More debt on an investment can make the project riskier making investors demand more in return. Leveraging through a good tool to move a project quickly and provide enhanced returns when things are rosy, can become problematic when the return on assets is not enough to cover interest payments. Investor can tend to lose a lot and quickly too bringing the project under stress. As such returns should generate from the property and not through use of leverage. 

Conclusion 

Any property investors should inquire about these risks and evaluate and satisfy himself as to the answers provided so that they can make investment decisions with confidence. Investors should be aware of any investment opportunities that don’t provide sufficient and enough answers and leave their questions to the prevalent risks unresolved.

The amount that you want to invest in property, very much depends upon your personal circumstances, resources, opportunity, earnings and your present situation. 

All said Investment in a property market should be considered as a marathon rather than a short-term initiative. Property investment requires not only good amount of research but patience. 

If the transaction is structured properly, it will yield good results and high dividends remaining low risks as compared to other investment avenues such as the stock, forex or the commodity market. 

Investors should understand that the property market may prove illiquid at times and it may be difficult to dispose of a property expeditiously if they require funds in an emergency. 

It would therefore not only be appropriate and wise, not to invest all the available resources in property but to diversify the investment into different liquid investment avenues as well. 

Property Investment is a lucrative business, because you can build long-term returns from a good quality rental property. 

High demand and low supply in key UK markets, unprecedented growth forecast, low interest rates and stamp duty holiday driving momentum with quality developments designed to meet tenant demand are all good enough reasons to invest in the property market now rather than later.

Besides positive UK property price predictions, housing undersupply, rental yields expected to rise, high prices in London, living trends pointing towards renting, increasing population are also good reasons to invest in the Leeds property market. 

There are plenty of benefits of property investment. Starters should know that they can themselves add value to the property by making small improvements with the passage of time and generate equity. 

Transforming an existing cellar into a living or storage space can boost a property’s value by up to 30% so long as the build cost per square foot is less than the price per square foot of the area. In fact, converting the cellar is one of the least complex home improvements as it doesn’t require planning permission. 

Very few people are parking the car in the garage, so if this is the case it makes senses to convert it into a living space. However, it needs to be checked if planning permission is required or not. In many cases, the work involved in converting a garage is classed as permitted development, not requiring planning permission, but always check with your local planning authority.

Though in most cases, requiring planning permission, the narrow alley running adjacent to the kitchen in a typical terraced or semi-detached house can be extend creating valuable space, improve the layout and enhance the property value. 

Most lofts can be converted, however an architect or builder should confirm 

that it’s possible before starting. An extra bedroom can add up to 15% to the value of the home, especially if it’s a loft conversion with an en suite bathroom. 

If you want to feel closer to nature, you can have a conservatory attached to your house which can provide extra space and value to your home. 

If this property is not your place of residence you can let it out and grow your yield. Capital appreciation is natural as housing market usually trends upwards. If you don’t want to sell, you could withdraw this equity through a refinance deal and expand your portfolio even further. 

Property investment is a better place to invest than bank deposit or shares and stocks or commodities markets with money more secure and providing stable yields. However, investors should understand that this investment is not without risks: 

• Property prices increase in the long term, however in the short term they can nosedive. An investor planning to invest for a short term, may need to take this factor into account.
• A rented property generates both cashflow and equity. However, there is a possibility when the property remains vacant because the tenant has left the property. During this period the investor may have to pay the mortgage bill and other associated expenses. 
• The property held is subject to wear and tear and an investor need to keep up with the maintenance wok which may eat up some of the profits. Also, tenants may not pay on time. It is therefore crucial to pick up good tenants. 
• Picking up good tenants is also necessary because good tenants can inflict less wear and tear and less of your time and money on your property. That’s why it’s crucial to pick up good tenants.

A good yield is considered somewhere between 7-10% but all depends on the location of investment, area, amount, market conditions, condition of the locality and the property and a number of other factors. We believe it might be possible to fetch gross yields in this range. 

Though we have a range of properties to select from however this may not necessarily be the one that an investor may have in mind.  We can find the right type of property for your budget and your taste. Please see our FAQ section