Is selling property always difficult?

westernpromise

Wow, Crashy - when they start paying people half a million to take those away, your 20-year sell-to-rent strategy will finally pay off!

Only another £1.9 million of price falls to go!

wotsthat

kabayiri wrote: »

Do you think we should change our nature in the UK, and be much more proactive in approaching home owners whose houses aren't on the market yet?

I already do this. My maximum bid for a place was turned down on a place last year. When the new owners moved in I popped round and asked that if they did consider selling in the future would they contact me first and maybe we could save some of the transaction costs.

I've also approached their near neighbours and made a similar request.

westernpromise

My tenants gave notice at the end of April to leave at the end of their two years at the end of June. I have just heard from the agents that they have found a replacement tenant who wants to move in the day after they move out and pay the same rent.

So no void, unless I choose to create one by having it repainted - which I will. Dulux, though, not Farrow and Ball any more. Tenant tax, innit.

This is the payoff on a quality strategy, really. London will always be full of fairly minted singles and couples who want to pay £30k to live in white stucco near a canal. I'm glad I have one of those rather than say 30 bedsits in Aberdeen. Same value, better tenants.

chucknorris

westernpromise wrote: »

My tenants gave notice at the end of April to leave at the end of their two years at the end of June. I have just heard from the agents that they have found a replacement tenant who wants to move in the day after they move out and pay the same rent.

So no void, unless I choose to create one by having it repainted - which I will. Dulux, though, not Farrow and Ball any more. Tenant tax, innit.

This is the payoff on a quality strategy, really. London will always be full of fairly minted singles and couples who want to pay £30k to live in white stucco near a canal. I'm glad I have one of those rather than say 30 bedsits in Aberdeen. Same value, better tenants.

The doomsters often talk about voids, but with multiple properties (averaging about 5) over 26 years, the only voids that I have had is ones that I planned myself for maintenance work between rental contracts.

Conrad

chucknorris wrote: »

The doomsters often talk about voids,

They certainly do.

Like you, touch wood I've only had one void period and it was my own silly fault for taking on a tenant from a difficult background (youth offender) I took pity on.


My number one piece of advice to anyone considering B2L is be VERY fussy over who you take on. I will take 40 enquiries to find the right tenant, it's well worth the extra effort.




Thinking about it I did have a couple of week void between tenants on another place

chucknorris

Conrad wrote: »

They certainly do.

Like you, touch wood I've only had one void period and it was my own silly fault for taking on a tenant from a difficult background (youth offender) I took pity on.


My number one piece of advice to anyone considering B2L is be VERY fussy over who you take on. I will take 40 enquiries to find the right tenant, it's well worth the extra effort.




Thinking about it I did have a couple of week void between tenants on another place

I too, made a mistake early on, and ended up with a rogue tenant, so I also learned my lesson the hard way like you did.

principlecounts

I sold my first house in Oct 2014. I didn't exchange my second home until June 2015. It was down to various issues in the chain that was often none of my control. I got so frustrated after 8 months I threatened to leave the chain, and suddenly certain links in the chain stopped sleeping. Just stay on top of the situation and be vocal about your position regularly.

lisyloo

chucknorris wrote: »

The doomsters often talk about voids, but with multiple properties (averaging about 5) over 26 years, the only voids that I have had is ones that I planned myself for maintenance work between rental contracts.

You are either lucky, clever or both.
I do know other landlords where couples have split up and the remaining tenant is on benefits, doesn't pay and can't be evicted quickly (in my town it's about 4 months to get to court).

Personally I think there is always an element of luck as good tenants can fall in hard times. You can of course tip the odds in your favour.

The people I know this happened to are very successful business people. They'll still make money on the many properties the have and still do well.
The point I'm making is that voids, property damage etc. Do happen to savvy people.
Obviously the more properties you have the lower the risk.

I'm not a doomster but I like to understand the risk as well as the likelihood. The chance of having a nightmare tenant might not be that high, but it could happen to anyone.

chucknorris

lisyloo wrote: »

You are either lucky, clever or both.
I do know other landlords where couples have split up and the remaining tenant is on benefits, doesn't pay and can't be evicted quickly (in my town it's about 4 months to get to court).

Personally I think there is always an element of luck as good tenants can fall in hard times. You can of course tip the odds in your favour.

The people I know this happened to are very successful business people. They'll still make money on the many properties the have and still do well.
The point I'm making is that voids, property damage etc. Do happen to savvy people.
Obviously the more properties you have the lower the risk.

I'm not a doomster but I like to understand the risk as well as the likelihood. The chance of having a nightmare tenant might not be that high, but it could happen to anyone.

I'm obviously not a doomster either, but even though we hadn't had any voids when we bought our last investment property (in 2008) during the previous 17 years, we still allowed for voids in our financial appraisal. But what I don't do is exaggerate their significance, I am however aware that they do exist, one of the advantages of renting slightly below the market rent, is the likely absence of voids.

We don't take people on benefits, for the simple reason that if they get into financial problems, you're unlikely to get a good end result. I have rented to people on benefits in the past, but what I didn't like was that although they were a decent (but poor) family, they always owed me money. I didn't have the heart to give them notice, but I hated having to continually check how much they owed me, they eventually (and reluctantly) realised they had to move somewhere cheaper, and did so. I really don't want to be a money lender, especially an interest free one, like I was back then.

westernpromise

What's quite nice about my latest renewal is that the current tenants are vacating 2 weeks before the actual end of tenancy date, but of course paying rent to the end. They're giving up 2 weeks of paid occupation essentially. The new tenants are moving in a week after they leave, which is still a week before the old tenancy ends. So I can send the painter in to redecorate it during that gap. Not only do I not have a void, I'm actually getting paid rent while it's empty and being redecorated.

London property; what's not to like?