Disclaimer: this is just a general guide to lettings for Landlords in England. Any legal information provided is not legal advice and should not be treated as such. The legal information in this guide/eBook is provided without any representations or warranties, express or implied. You should seek help from a professional for any legal and financial matters.

If you’re a prospective or new landlord, the best place to start is my Landlord Guide, which is 100% free to download. It contains an accumulation of articles I’ve written over several years which I believe to be most suitable for inexperienced landlords.

Before you begin this journey through the Ultimate Landlord Guide, I should clarify that the guide is written for private sector UK Landlords in England with single tenanted properties (e.g. NOT for Houses in Multiple Occupation). However, it does cover a broad range of topics and best practices that will apply to all UK landlords, but the information related to legal compliance is just for Landlords in England.

Why download my eBook?

  • 100% FREE. Just subscribe to my emailing list by entering your name and email address above and download your copy! You’ll receive a download link, along with regular email updates, including notifications of every time I publish a new awesome blog post, landlord tips, advice, discount codes and exclusive offers! All the good stuff, really.

    Don’t worry, you can unsubscribe at any time.

  • Over 25,000 copies have been downloaded! You need this!
  • Useful for new landlords, first-time landlords and prospective landlords. Even experienced landlords can learn a thing or two, maybe!
  • Real practical A-Z guide, providing the complete blueprint to being a landlord, including tips, advice & lovely discount codes!
  • 28 chapters included, from buying the ideal BTL property to finding the perfect tenants!
  • Easy to understand, written by a very average person.
  • I hate SPAM and promise to keep your email address safe. I will NOT sell/distribute your email address to third-parties!

The backstory (if you’re interested)…

I still clearly remember when I was first started flirting with the idea of buying my first buy-to-let property and becoming a landlord. But not just any old landlord, a filthy rich one, with the resources to make ludicrous and lavish purchases without blinking an eyelid, like an exotic and rare lizard. I don’t even like lizards, they make for a ridiculous purchase and pet, but exotic pets just scream pomposity and success- so why not? Does any of this sound familiar? Not necessarily the exotic lizard part, but the filthy rich part and the concept of being able to buy an old shit without financial restraints. Yes? Good.

I’m still pursuing my millions, and I don’t actually see the light at the end of the tunnel, but I’ve got the ball in motion, I have a few BTL’s- and getting started is the hardest part.

However, at the very beginning I was clueless, it was pathetic, I didn’t know what to do or where to turn. I had a goal, but not a single inclination of how to achieve it. Sound familiar? Good, because you’ve probably come to the right place then.

For me, the whole prospect of buying a house was overwhelming, let alone taking on the responsibility of being a landlord, a first-time landlord.

How does it work? What are the laws? Do I need to be qualified? They were just a few of the questions that ran through my mind, and I didn’t no where to find the answers. But the scariest aspect, which I still believe to be true for every first-time landlord, is the idea of investing so much money into something we know so little about. What if I lose it all?

I’ve seen other people do it successfully, and they make it look and sound easy. But the prospect is unbelievably scary when you’re dealing with our own money, right? I’m surprised I didn’t physically shit my pants when I transferred the deposit for my first BTL purchase, although I’m pretty sure I did in every metaphorical way possible. Scary.

I purchased my first BTL before buying my own house, so I was clueless and inexperienced in every aspect, but that didn’t stop me from pursuing my goal. Granted, it took me almost 2 years of just contemplating before actually getting the ball rolling, so it wasn’t just a case of “doing it” There’s no big-talk here, just the ramblings of a once petrified and unknowing prospective landlord that eventually found his shrivelled-up, raisin balls. Now, let me help you find yours… they’re in there somewhere, I know they are!

So where should I start? My first port of call was to do research, and lots of it. Apparently research is key. it’s boring as shit, which makes it a soul-destroying task, but it’s key. I wanted to maximise my chances of being successful so I figured learning some practical knowledge would be the best way.

Like the typical modern man/woman, I started my quest by scouring the internet for useful websites that could assist me with my pursuit to happiness. I found little, and the little I did find didn’t make sense to me and mostly wanted me to part with my cash to learn more. All I wanted was a one-stop shop, a step-by-step guide/resource in layman’s terms so I could understand the process of becoming a legitimate landlord. I couldn’t find it. But evidently, there was no shortage of virtual dogshit.
I read what I found and I learned what I could, but I can honestly say that I didn’t know anywhere near enough. In retrospect, it’s incredible I made it through my first purchase. But my inexperience (and lack of research) didn’t go unpunished; I made many stupid mistakes, which primarily consisted of overpaying for services I didn’t need, and neglecting laws I didn’t know existed. Guilty.

But the truth is, no matter what you read, no matter how much you listen, or who you listen to, the best way to learn is by actually doing it and putting yourself through the grinder. You’ll never fully understand the landlord cycle until you go through it several times over. However, that’s not to say researching is a total waste of time. I still wish I had an easy to digest step-by-step guide for new landlords so I had better direction.

My point is, no one can teach you everything about being a landlord, not even the experts, and no one can fully prepare you. So, while the steep learning curve is unavoidable – no matter how much research you endure – there is definitely perks to grinding through the mundane homework in order to substantially minimise risk. And hopefully, the homework doesn’t have to be utterly painful, especially since I’ve [attempted to] throw together an easy guide for new, prospective, and accidental landlords– something I wish I had found when I started pursuing the idea of becoming a landlord. It covers the key steps of becoming a landlord, so you can at least understand the process (without having to shuffle through several resources, and/or read a book thicker than my…). I’ve tried to put each point in order of occurrence.

You never know, after you read it, the idea of being a landlord may not seem so appealing. Or you may want it even more than ever. I hope it helps either way.

More Posts for Prospective, New & First-Time Landlords

109 Join the Conversation...

Showing 59 - 109 comments (out of 109)
1 out of 5 rating2 out of 5 rating3 out of 5 rating4 out of 5 rating5 out of 5 rating38 people have rated New Landlord4.9 out of 5 Stars.Leave your Comment / Review
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Barry Smith 3rd March, 2017 @ 09:33 1 out of 5 rating 2 out of 5 rating 3 out of 5 rating 4 out of 5 rating 1 out of 5 rating

Really helpful and well written apart from unnecessary and misplaced use of offensive language (hence four stars). Ironic that within the guide it suggests maintaining a professional image!
Having got that off my chest I have as a very new landlord found it refreshingly very straight forward and of immense value. Many thanks.

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Sumit 22nd July, 2017 @ 23:12 1 out of 5 rating 2 out of 5 rating 3 out of 5 rating 4 out of 5 rating 5 out of 5 rating

Very well written and informative. Thank you!

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Marie S 3rd September, 2017 @ 08:31 1 out of 5 rating 2 out of 5 rating 3 out of 5 rating 4 out of 5 rating 5 out of 5 rating

You should charge for this guide because I doubt you'd get any complaints. Brilliant -:)

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Steve 13th October, 2017 @ 15:42 1 out of 5 rating 2 out of 5 rating 3 out of 5 rating 4 out of 5 rating 5 out of 5 rating

Great read and so informative! Many thanks and keep up the good work.

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Sharon 23rd November, 2017 @ 23:11 1 out of 5 rating 2 out of 5 rating 3 out of 5 rating 4 out of 5 rating 5 out of 5 rating

I didn't expect the guide to be that useful. Thankyou

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Rob 4th January, 2018 @ 17:15

Just read your book and it is invaluable, I am looking to dip my toes in being a landlord. Thank you so much for all the information.

Kind regards

Rob

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Rob 4th January, 2018 @ 17:17 1 out of 5 rating 2 out of 5 rating 3 out of 5 rating 4 out of 5 rating 5 out of 5 rating

Best book ever on in's and out's of being a landlord.

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The Landlord 5th January, 2018 @ 08:29

@Rob
Thanks Rob, really appreciate your feedback. Pleased to hear it was useful for you :)

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dave 30th January, 2018 @ 13:52 1 out of 5 rating 2 out of 5 rating 3 out of 5 rating 4 out of 5 rating 5 out of 5 rating

great post

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Rob 17th April, 2018 @ 12:20 1 out of 5 rating 2 out of 5 rating 3 out of 5 rating 4 out of 5 rating 5 out of 5 rating

Great stuff...very informative.

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Wendy 17th July, 2018 @ 17:37 1 out of 5 rating 2 out of 5 rating 3 out of 5 rating 4 out of 5 rating 5 out of 5 rating

Very good for first-time landlords like me. It teaches me a lot what I need to know. Wish I had read it earlier before I became a landlord.
Thank you very much, really appreciated it!

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Paul Barrett 10th January, 2019 @ 15:00

Landlord can you block this idiot from posting
He sounds like one of those Nigerians.
As I am signed for email notifications I keep getting this pratt and his stupid posts.
Any chance you can get rid of the pratt.

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The Landlord Avatar
The Landlord 11th January, 2019 @ 13:10

Hi Paul,

I'm trying, but the buggers/spammers keep changing their identities, which makes it almost impossible! They're really getting on my t*ts!

I'm going to look into other means of blocking them. Apologies for the inconvenience.

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Paul Barrett 12th January, 2019 @ 02:53

@landlord
Yep I get you are endeavou ring to resolve the situation.
Think I'm going to have to turn of my notification sound which is currently a bullet being fired.
Something I'd like to do with this spammer.
My real concern though is not just the issue of this spammer being a PITA but the fact that he is potentially degrading the quality of your site with search engines etc.
You want your brilliant content to figure highly and these spammer postings could reduce your rankings etc.
We who enjoy your useful site don't wish to see all that hard work of yours subsumed by spammer posts.
He could start doing it on all your threads.
That would be a nightmare for you to resolve.
Perhaps you put out a shout out for someone who knows how to stop this idiot.
I'm sure there be some whizz-kid out there who enjoys your site and would wish to assist you to ensure it retains its efficacy.

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Neil Spillane 19th February, 2019 @ 09:34 1 out of 5 rating 2 out of 5 rating 3 out of 5 rating 4 out of 5 rating 5 out of 5 rating

I’m a complete novice to the rental property business and found this ebook a totally fascinating read which I will be returning to for reference in the future.
Thankfully, unknowingly I’ve done the right things in choosing two properties as rentals.
Thank you for the time and for sharing your knowledge with me as I strongly believe it’s saved me untold stress as a novice.

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Gary 14th May, 2019 @ 19:42 1 out of 5 rating 2 out of 5 rating 3 out of 5 rating 4 out of 5 rating 5 out of 5 rating

As a newbie Landlord coming into the world of property I read this document from start to finish and found this really helpful as it mirrored my journey thus far.
I took great benefit from all your stories of the good, bad and ugly situations that I will come across and find it absolutely critical to have prior informative advice so not to trip up on my road to success.
I would recommend this blog to any property investor new or old as we all learn from other peoples mistakes and any advice is always good advice.
Thanks for the read and look forward to delving deep into more of your useful advice and blogs......

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isabel 15th June, 2019 @ 15:14 1 out of 5 rating 2 out of 5 rating 3 out of 5 rating 4 out of 5 rating 5 out of 5 rating

Hi, web site has turned into my bible. I only have one (probably very stupid) question.
When sigining a tenancy contract or any other document, are electronic signatures valid? By electronic signature I mean the PDF tool to sign a document.
thanks in advance for any info.
Isabel

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Paul Barrett 16th June, 2019 @ 06:10

@isobel
Now don't take this as gospel as given a similar situation I would check again for myself.
But as far as I am aware digital signature is Ok.
But it is still worthwhile having duplicate paper documents signed.
The Post will suffice.
Yes it will be costly post as you will have to send an SAE to the tenants.
When and if it comes to Court process the old fashioned courts still prefer signed bits of papers.
Just have them as a backup.
I'm sure somewhere on this site with its massive content some mention may have been made about this issue.
Indeed really I shouldn't even have commented I should have just read up on this site where it is usually possible to find everything you wanted to know and lots of stuff that you don't know about but that you NEED to know!!!
I doubt you will ever be caught out by crafty tenants if you follow all the information on this site and then mitigating against losses purchase some of the excellent products the Landlord provides................we need to keep him going!!!

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Isabel 17th June, 2019 @ 13:33

@Paul Barrett. Thanks for this Paul. I am sure it has been posted before but I lose the will to live searching in forums (I have tried though).
Isabel

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Penny 12th September, 2019 @ 15:27

Such a helpful resource, and always amusing as well to boot. I've read many of The Landlord's articles, and as a first time landlord I would have been royally screwed without them. So much brilliant advice, generously given. Absolutely essential reads for anyone venturing into the abyss of property rentals - thank you, thank you, you knowledgeable, witty (probably devilishly handsome), rental expert, you.

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Penny 12th September, 2019 @ 15:28 1 out of 5 rating 2 out of 5 rating 3 out of 5 rating 4 out of 5 rating 5 out of 5 rating

Meant to say - 5 stars!!!

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The Landlord Avatar
The Landlord 13th September, 2019 @ 10:44

Thanks Penny, really appreciate it, and I'm glad my ramblings have proven to be useful! And thanks for the coffees!!! Incredibly generous!

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Phil Hunt 7th January, 2020 @ 09:21 1 out of 5 rating 2 out of 5 rating 3 out of 5 rating 4 out of 5 rating 5 out of 5 rating

Thank you very much, no one seems to want to part with any help and advice for this venture; without a fee. This is a welcoming gift of knowledge for free, come on people get behind this guy and give some respect, help is what it means and everyone can use help any day anytime and for any purpose. The world should be full of people like this and life would be much easier and friendly. This guy may need the same kind of help and advice for some other field he wishes to grow within and let’s share!
Well done I say

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Phil Hunt 7th January, 2020 @ 09:23 1 out of 5 rating 2 out of 5 rating 3 out of 5 rating 4 out of 5 rating 5 out of 5 rating

Excellent start to my new venture and we’ll put it to good use! 🙏

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Christine 18th January, 2020 @ 00:42 1 out of 5 rating 2 out of 5 rating 3 out of 5 rating 4 out of 5 rating 5 out of 5 rating

Really well written, comprehensive guide. It's easy to read and understand and covers a lot of issues without seeming weighty. A realistic and humorous viewpoint from an experienced landlord. It's invaluable in helping decide whether to get into the business and gives tons of useful information and links.

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sarah 26th February, 2020 @ 15:37 1 out of 5 rating 2 out of 5 rating 3 out of 5 rating 4 out of 5 rating 5 out of 5 rating

As a complete novice considering BLT...sorry thats BTL not the sandwich variety... this eBook is sensational! Thank you for your time and experience, I have found the whole experience fantastic! Cheers for that The Landlord x

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Tony 10th March, 2020 @ 18:21 1 out of 5 rating 2 out of 5 rating 3 out of 5 rating 4 out of 5 rating 5 out of 5 rating

Excellent piece of work @Landlord... I'm weighing up the pros and cons of property investment .v. share trading at the moment, and this has helped immensely.

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The Landlord Avatar
The Landlord 11th March, 2020 @ 11:43

@Sarah @Tony
Thanks for the feedback, really appreciate it. Means a lot. Glad it was useful :)

@Tony
Why not spread your eggs, diversify? Good luck either way!

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Dan best 19th March, 2020 @ 19:41 1 out of 5 rating 2 out of 5 rating 3 out of 5 rating 4 out of 5 rating 1 out of 5 rating

Firstly i find your blogs both factual and entertaining if not some what statistically I'd love to know any measures for hmo as a public building i can see lock down coming i will keep it brief yes bad landlords had it far to easy for years but now it seem the legitimate ones are off balance so far now that its easy to weigh up things and the answer is almost always yes sell up or what is the point this blog is yet another nail in the coffin

Thanks keep up the good work

And lets try keep offering high quality service and accomodation even if the capital is wrapping us in legitraition and cost and allowing the tennants to rule the roost

Ps if any one reads this as a licence dosent need a court order is this exempt from the ban on asking tenants to leave if naughty

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Ed Wu 14th April, 2020 @ 21:56 1 out of 5 rating 2 out of 5 rating 3 out of 5 rating 4 out of 5 rating 5 out of 5 rating

Highly recommended! Insightful and easy to read and follow, it's a must read.

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Lee 20th April, 2020 @ 14:51

A great read and insight to becoming a landlord, I am at the beginning of my journey so thank you very much for all the content.

Regards
Lee

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Lee 20th April, 2020 @ 14:54 1 out of 5 rating 2 out of 5 rating 3 out of 5 rating 4 out of 5 rating 5 out of 5 rating

Forgot to star rate 🤣😂🤣

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Bruce Wayne 20th August, 2020 @ 09:17

@the landlord ,

Are there links we can use where you get financial kickback? as you put a lot of effort into this !

I found your site whilst researching and am probably in the similar situation as you and bricking it.

I rent a family place currently whilst family are in the process of moving but then looking to get my own place.

As the timescales dint match up I’m considering BTL on a flat then possibly switching to a residential mortgage

Offer accepted, but now that’s happens I’m getting:

- cold sweats 😬
- should I go ahead🥺😩
- people trying to talk me out ( horror stories / new tax so won’t make any money/ fees for refurb, kitchen bathroom , carpet etc )😩
- should I do interest only btl then switch to residential

That type of stuff

Thanks

Bruce

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David 23rd August, 2020 @ 10:49

Excellent ebook, enjoyed reading it.
For a bit of minutiae for your next revision on page 128 ‘Ongoing Landlord Support’,
Is says ‘new/notice’ should it not be ‘new/novice’?

Cheers
David

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The Landlord Avatar
The Landlord 24th August, 2020 @ 09:34

Thanks @David, really appreciate it.

Doh, that was a typo! Thanks for letting me know, I have corrected it in the latest version. So that means only thousands and thousands of previous downloaded copies have the mistake *slaps forehead*

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Rachael Heatley 6th September, 2020 @ 16:02 1 out of 5 rating 2 out of 5 rating 3 out of 5 rating 4 out of 5 rating 5 out of 5 rating

For fear of making this sound like a fake review I LOVED this guide. I read it all in one go as it is not full of jargon and is actually pretty funny too. But most of all I've learnt loads, pretty much everything and feel very equipped now to go forward. Thanks so much! 10/10

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Ian cowie 13th September, 2020 @ 07:50 1 out of 5 rating 2 out of 5 rating 3 out of 5 rating 4 out of 5 rating 5 out of 5 rating

As a soon to be first time landlord, i found this guide extremely helpful. I was under the impression that a fully managed service was the best route to take for every landlord. After reading this i will be self managing, to at least see if i am up to the task.

Thank you for this. I look forward to reading other content you have put out. 10/10

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Gail Powell 21st September, 2020 @ 12:22 1 out of 5 rating 2 out of 5 rating 3 out of 5 rating 4 out of 5 rating 1 out of 5 rating

very good site

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Becky 29th December, 2020 @ 20:00

Hello I'm about to rent out my house. Last time I used an agent and let it unfurnished. This time I'm going it alone. What I'd like explained is the difference between a furnished and and unfurnished let, can you help? TIA, Becky

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Paul Barrett 29th December, 2020 @ 20:12

@becky

There is no difference!

Just some tenants won't have furniture items so having furniture attracts them to occupy.

If a flat then invariably white goods are included as part-furnished.

No more rent is achievable for furnished compared to unfurnished.

Consider furnishing just as a marketing cost.

What you will then have to do is reject all those tenants who have their own furnishings unless you have a storage facility.
95% of my flat occupants wanted furnished.

I rejected the other 5% as I don't have a giant storage facility.

You can obtain all your furnishings for free from FB as long as you have a van to collect them.

Most modern furniture is rubbish and should be considered as so much firewood when you have finished with it.

But if you obtain it for free then what do you care!?
There is always other free stuff.

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Chris Lane 4th January, 2021 @ 20:19 1 out of 5 rating 2 out of 5 rating 3 out of 5 rating 4 out of 5 rating 5 out of 5 rating

Wow - I'm entering this as a first time landlord - having not owned a place and rented all my life I find myself sitting here both as property owner and potential landlord! It sure is a scary undertaking, but your eBook/blog has everything any new landlord could possibly need. So thank you for sharing your, comedic take on a lengthy subject, which makes the reading all the more easy to digest.

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Lee 20th January, 2021 @ 07:37

I am planning to start a BTL business soon. This ebook is brilliant! Comprehensive, practical and funny. Thank you!

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Lee 20th January, 2021 @ 07:40 1 out of 5 rating 2 out of 5 rating 3 out of 5 rating 4 out of 5 rating 5 out of 5 rating

and the star rating ...

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Al G 30th March, 2021 @ 17:29 1 out of 5 rating 2 out of 5 rating 3 out of 5 rating 4 out of 5 rating 5 out of 5 rating

Really cool document - Thanks for making time to summarise everything

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Ann 23rd May, 2021 @ 09:54 1 out of 5 rating 2 out of 5 rating 3 out of 5 rating 4 out of 5 rating 5 out of 5 rating

This information is invaluable and written in a way even I can understand. Thanks for taking the time and effort to share your knowledge with us newbies, you’re very kind.

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Rowley 5th May, 2022 @ 05:40 1 out of 5 rating 2 out of 5 rating 3 out of 5 rating 4 out of 5 rating 1 out of 5 rating

Enjoyable to read, thank you. Wish I had come across it earlier as following your approach could have saved me from a lot of the proverbial downsides of being a landlord. It gets more complicated in Scotland of course and made more challenging with the additional tenancy protection that came into force in response to the Coronavirus. Maybe worth an additional blog sometime soon as the rental landscape changes.

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Kipper 3rd July, 2022 @ 20:02 1 out of 5 rating 2 out of 5 rating 3 out of 5 rating 4 out of 5 rating 5 out of 5 rating

An excellent read, thank you very much for sharing this, very informative!

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Robert O'Brien 14th October, 2022 @ 14:22

As an 'accidental landlord' I made the mistakes you discuss of leaving it all to the pros (Letting Agent) and waited for the money to roll in :-(
This has worked OK to be fair and the LA is actually very good, albeit quite expensive. Female so no slicked back hair!
What this has done is clarified my thinking due to the current turmoils in the PRS on whether to sell up or stick at it. Still a bit more pondering to do but I will probably sort my life out and become a nice but more hard-nosed, self-reliant Landlord.
Thanks for your insights and enjoy your coffee!
Rob

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Robert O'Brien 14th October, 2022 @ 14:24

Missed the star rating.
Ebook is a humorous, easy read but explains the real world of being a LL.

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Normy 19th September, 2023 @ 11:13

Although we are not contemplating renting (the TV horror stories dissuaded us), I was very impressed with this forthright and honest guide. I read it all. Such a wealth of information should we ever change our mind.

I would strongly recommend any potential landlord to read and digest it thouroughky.

More power to you Landlord...!

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Den 2nd November, 2023 @ 01:40 1 out of 5 rating 2 out of 5 rating 3 out of 5 rating 4 out of 5 rating 5 out of 5 rating

@Landlord Big thanks for sharing your information and personal comments! I love to read this eBook just like an interesting novel. You could be a writer when you are free from managing your tenants :)

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