Welcome to week 9 of the Blog Posts.

We are into March already, 2023 is flying by! This week I want to recap on what you should be considering as a property investor/landlord looking to invest this year.

Seasoned landlords will need to assess both short term and long term aspects when looking at their property portfolio. The sales market in 2023 was predicted to crash, however it seems more unlikely that the initial worries were feared far worse than is currently playing out. However, there are changes on the horizon that you need to consider as a landlord.

In my opinion, the property market is an investment where the long term goal is key. Particularly if you are looking at building a strong buy to let portfolio. Sales prices will dip (we are seeing that already this year), however the landlords that stick through this will benefit the most with increased rental prices year on year and solid capital appreciation on their portfolio.

Below I outline the areas that you should be employing in 2023 to put you in the strongest position possible.

  • Being up to date with the ever-changing rules and regulations. Landlords will have heard of the Renters reform bill and the changes this imposes. As a landlord you need to be up to date with what these changes are, and how you and your portfolio will be affected. Having an agent on board to help you manage your portfolio is a great way to stay on top of these changes.
  • Efficient tenancy management. Half of the battle is securing a great tenant, something that should be reasonably straight forward in a strong performing lettings market. However once your property is tenanted, you need to make sure you are on top of rental arrears, property inspections, maintenance, legislation, safety certificates, rental reviews etc.
  • Ensure your properties are kept in good order. Tying in with the above somewhat, you need to make sure your properties are being looked after by your tenants (property inspections are key), and that any maintenance is actioned accordingly. Well kept properties will keep tenants happy, rents high, and less void periods between tenancies.
  • Securing future properties in the right areas. Some areas outperform others by great margins. Buying a property on a particular street, or with key transport links, could help justify that extra £100-£200 rent to a similar property elsewhere.

I pride myself in helping landlords maximise their income from their property portfolio. Keeping up to date on the legislation changes and ensuring landlords stay ahead of the game. Reach out to myself if you need assistance with your current property portfolio, or are looking to expand it further. I have off-market deals in the pipeline along with tenanted properties looking to be sold direct to landlords.

As always, I am happy to offer my honest advice on any properties you want my opinion on within the market, regardless of the marketing agent. I want to ensure my clients secure the best properties in the marketplace. Please do reach out if you need my opinion on anything.

Buy to let pick of the week

This week, the buy to let pick of the week is a property I have already mailed out to our buy to let applicants. We are selling a four bedroom house on Spinner Street, in Stockport. Guide price of £150,000. Click here to see the Rightmove advert. 

The property is in need of internal works, however nothing too major. I would recommend a repaint, re-carpet, new kitchen. We have rented out an identical property on this street to a family for £1200 pcm.

As the property is being sold via auction, I imagine there will be bids coming in above the guide price. However there is still a lot of scope for this property with great yields to be had, even if purchased a fair bit over the guide price! Give ourselves a call on 0161 474 8668 if you would like to arrange a viewing on this property.

Many thanks,

Liam Foster – Lettings & Investment Manager – Stockport