Mortgage Free - so good they'll do it twice! Wynnvegas aiming for the big house

wynnvegas

Evening All,

Wow - what a couple of days. Billy's grand plan is coming along nicely on very nearly all fronts (except, typically, on the main goal!):

1. Started writing my book. I've done a whole first paragraph and I'm playing with a couple of working titles.
2. Offset mortgage very nearly complete - 2.89% now so we're just to get the paperwork to the IFA for submission.
3. First BTL purchase in the process of being completed. Just the documentation to hand into the lawyers on Friday - all but settled though.
4. Seen BTL property 2 (insofar as we're likely to go for it) tonight - bit more work to be done on this one as it's properly old fashioned. Valued at £80k, we're going to go in really cheeky at about £55k to start with and not beyond £58k.
5. Sorted a meeting with Lyndsay the Letting Agent for Friday at 3pm to start my understanding of the letting process and how that's all going to work.
6. Sorted Colin out with a bit of free representation in his tribunal case - went very well so we'll be saving a bit of cash there.
7. Got the first two quotes from Colin sorted for our first two BTLs. First one is £1,400 - new staircase and new kitchen. Second needs a lot done and looks like £5,500.
8. Discussed with Colin the prospect of buying into his business - he's ok with the idea and the grander plans I've got so there's some stuff to move forward with there.
9. Had a bit of a chat with with the Chairman about a potential MBO - still don't think he thinks I'm serious so we'll maybe need to look at that a bit later down the line.
10. Started drawing up the figures and basic planning for my employability business. Couple of chats had about getting the right people involved and looking like a properly decent prospect already. Probably got my main partner and first staff member set up already for as soon as we get it going. Funding sources to be identified next.
11. Had a chat with one of the girls in accounts who is helping me with what is looking like a ridiculous investigation - really serious stuff that could end up with a lot of folk in a whole lot of trouble
12. Managed to compile enough policy information to support what is a properly decent opportunity for the business - took a couple of hours of intense hours on the policy verification and drafting to meet the submission deadline but we're looking good for what could well be up to £3m of business in the next couple of years. I feel a recruitment kick coming on!

No significant movement on the big house at all. Waiting on the seller, the agent and the council planners coming back to us so we'll chase them all on Friday if we don't hear anything back tomorrow. We have been promised 4 new BTL properties to look at tomorrow - 6 could yet be a bit of stretch before the end of the year but if we get 5, I'll be delighted. If we then get them done up and let out for a decent period, I'll be the one dancing a jig in Edinburgh.

So that was Wednesday! Tomorrow is an early flight to Bristol for a bit of a day out meeting a couple of folk to sort out some of our service problems down the road.

Hope everyone is grand and dandy.

Cheers,

Billy

Twiddy

wynnvegas wrote: »

Hi Twiddy,

I hope I can attack it on all fronts. Whether half of it comes off or not, we'll have to see but I've got a real appetite for getting cracking. We know we've got a bit of money to play with and we'll speculate a wee bit and hopefully not make too many mistakes along the way. I don't buy into the "mistakes are an inevtiable part of learning" ethos and we'll hopefully pick up enough from the professionals we're working with to limit our exposure. At least, in the event that it all goes wrong and we end up destitute, someone else will be able to avoid the same pitfalls!!

Cheers,

Billy

And I'm sure if you do become desitute that one of the other keen BTLers on here will put you and Moyra up on mates rates!!

Destitution for you? I doubt that very much mate, you seem to know how your head screws onto your shoulders, you'll be fine....:cool:

Cheers
T

wynnvegas

Hi Twiddy,

I certainly hope so. I'll make sure the first run of the book is stored appropriately so that I can flog them on the street if it comes to it!

Cheers,

Billy

wynnvegas

Morning All,

No Deal! The plot we had taken a fair fondness to isn't a goer unfortunately. There is little prospect of expanding the permissions to build to anything close to the size of Big House that we're after and, in putting in a verbal offer of £125,000, the speed at which it was rejected proved that it was more of a cheeky honey trap to lure people in and create a bidding frenzy. No matter - we move onto the next one. We are going to see a few houses next week, if only for an idea as to how to amend our current Big House design.

We've been to see another house (Shotts this time) and we'll put in something of a cheeky offer on that one. With it being very much a buyers market, we're going to go in £24,000 under the asking price as it needs kitting out across the whole property. I'm not confident of it being accepted as the seller is asking for £16,000 under the asking price. We'll certainly test a bit of that resolve. If our offer isn't accepted, we're happy to walk away and move onto the next one. At the rate things are going, the first property that we've bought will end up with us being 100% offset in the squalor by the time it goes through. We're definitely not going to be rushed into decisions that don't work for us regardless of who is doing the pushing.

After chatting with the Letting Agent yesterday, we're going to open a business account for the BTL project. That means building a business plan which is my job over the weekend. I've built a template that takes care of the first ten years of each of the three businesses I'm looking to either build or invest in so we'll get the three of those rolling over the next 7 days with the winning team. In the day job, we've (the Board, a couple of Senior Managers and me) got our final strategy meeting on Monday (a full day session which everyone is looking forward to!) which will get things really rocking on that front. Had a very interesting day on Friday that I can't say too much about just now but it's very likely going to ensure that I'm very busy in the early new year doing the nasty part of my job.

Still haven't heard much from my two charities of choice so we'll have to wait and see what comes back from each of those. It's a sad day when I can't even give my time away!

We're off to The Falkirk Stadium today to cheer on the mascot, Fergie the Falkirk Fox. Our friend won the eBay bidding war to be mascot for the day so there's 50 or so going to support him whilst freezing half to death in a dinky wee stadium on an already freezing December day. Moyra has been huddled in bed with the electric blanket on for much of the morning and is trying to form a plan that would mean her only having to get out of bed on weekends for the toilet (so far, it involves me doing all the cooking and cleaning and sticking a telly on the wall in the bedroom).

The Christmas Tree is up (albeit at an infuriating jaunty angle (doubtless weighed down by the newest Christmas baubles - the Bellagio one is massive! We're going to start the Christmas wrapping tonight when we get back and hopefully finish it before the end of tomorrow.

Hope everyone is grand and festively dandy!

Cheers,

Billy

newgirly

I feel exhausted just reading your diary Billy, you certainly don't mess around once you have an idea. Good luck with finding all the houses you want, its a fascinating diary best of luck.

wynnvegas

Thanks Newgirly,

The houses are thin on the ground at the moment but we've got a couple of MSE property sourcing peeps on the go who are providing an excellent service to us (better in fact than the professional property sourcers!). With the right people on board and the support we've had and can count on going forward, there's almost no way things can go awry!!

Cheers,

Billy

unhappy_shopper

Hi Billy,

You are progressing well in your BTL venture. As the saying goes 'Slow and steady wins the race'. So don't rush!
Regarding the plot of land for the Big House, keep looking and I am sure you will find a better one. Also wishing Moyra a speedy recovery

wynnvegas

Hi US,

Finished the first draft of the BTL business plan (still struggling for a name for this one!) and it's looking particularly decent. We won't rush any of these and we'll hopefully end up with a really solid portfolio.

Not too disappointed about the plot now that we've digested the rejection. We'll resign ourselves to a few years of squalor (marginally less so once the kitchen it done in the summer) and go harder at the businesses.

Moyra has just about defrosted from the football. Aside from shivering through the experience in silence (it was apparently too cold to complain), her biggest reaction of the day was to shout at the referee for what she thought was ten minutes of injury time being added at the end of the second half (it was actually a substitute). She has promised it will be her one and only football match.

Cheers,

Billy

Lapinette

Hi Billy,

Wow your diary is really inspiring! Great read and some great ideas!I'm also trying on the BTL front. Just bought my 3rd flat ( well signing this month and can't wait to get stuck in ) I'm hoping to pay off the mortgage in the next 5 years max if possible. I'm in France but i'm originally from Scotland.

I'll be following your diary closely!

Good luck Billy with your projects!

lulabelle1

Moyra sounds like a real hoot, I like her!
Best, L