Property Blog [ Page 5 ]

Who’s Shitting Themselves About Remortgaging?

4 Comments Comments / Article written on 31 Jul 2008, and filed in the Mortgage Stuff section

I’m just wondering who is worried about remortgaging? In March 2009 I’m due to come off 2 fixed rate mortgages, and onto an estimated 7.8% standard variable rate. Of course, I’m hoping to remortgage and get a better rate than going onto the standard variable rate with my current lenders. Mind you, how things are [...]

We’re On Team Kirsty Allsopp

5 Comments Comments / Article written on 23 Jul 2008, and filed in the Ranting Landlord section

That’s right, we at property Investment Project are on team Kirsty Allsopp. Not because we particularly like her (or dislike her, just for the record) or because she’s a property enthusiast like us, but simply because she’s taking a verbal beating for no real reason besides from other peoples incompetence. So in support of Allsopp, [...]

Finding Tenants Without A Letting Agent- An Update – A Smelly Cat & A Slight Change Of Plan (Part 3)

0 Comments Comments / Article written on 20 Jul 2008, and filed in the Marketing & Finding Tenants section

Right, time for an update on my project of finding tenants (without the assistance of extortionate Letting Agents). For those that dived into this blog post without having read my previous, related entries, you may feel free to get a swift little recap:
Finding Tenants Without A Letting Agent- A Live Experiment (Part 1)
Finding Tenants Without [...]

Adding Someone To Your Mortgage

0 Comments Comments / Article written on 14 Jul 2008, and filed in the Mortgage Stuff section

The process of adding someone to a mortgage is quite common. The most common scenario is adding a long-term partner. The actual process is actually pretty straight forward, it’s just the consequences of the process which I think most people should be most cautious about.
How to add someone to your mortgage
If you want to add [...]

I Just Got Cheaper Home Insurance

0 Comments Comments / Article written on 10 Jul 2008, and filed in the Landlord Money & Saving Costs section

All I’m hearing on the news is that we should all strap up, tighten our purse strings, and brace ourselves for a rough financial patch. That got me thinking, ‘where does my money actually go?’
I was looking through my bank statement the other day (something which I rarely do, but should do more often), and [...]

Saving Vs Make Mortgage Overpayments, And Negative Equity

0 Comments Comments / Article written on 08 Jul 2008, and filed in the Mortgage Stuff section

It’s a no-brainer; now is the time to start making overpayments and reduce the bain of the average homeowners life, the mortgage. This especially applies to those still in their initial fixed rate period (honeymoon period). Unfortunately, there are no real signs of the credit crunch improving anytime soon, and there’s certainly no sign of [...]

Tony Blair Is Suffering From Negaive Equity. So What?

0 Comments Comments / Article written on 04 Jul 2008, and filed in the Ranting Landlord section

I just read an article on The Independent website, by Robert Verkaik, titled, After all the gloom, at last there’s some good news on house prices…. The article dribbles on about how the Blairs’ numerous luxury pimp pads are decaying in value due to the property.
Now, there’s 2 points I want to drag up [...]

Renting To Avoid A Property Chain Disaster

0 Comments Comments / Article written on 01 Jul 2008, and filed in the Buying Property Tips section

I didn’t really realise how many reasons there are behind people choosing to rent, and it seems though more reasons surface every day. I mean, when someone tells me they’re renting I just automatically shuffle through 3 of the most possible justifications, and try to guess which category they fall under:

priced out of the market
prefer [...]

Finding Tenants Without A Letting Agent- An Update (Part 2)

3 Comments Comments / Article written on 28 Jun 2008, and filed in the Marketing & Finding Tenants section

Ok, so it’s been nearly 2 weeks since I started advertising my soon-to-be vacant property. For those out of the loop, feel free to catch up on part 1, Finding Tenants Without A Letting Agent. But basically, all I did was design a flyer (to put in various shop windows), advertise on Gumtree and spread [...]

Does An Estate Agent Get Paid Even Without A Sale?

0 Comments Comments / Article written on 23 Jun 2008, and filed in the Selling Property Tips section

So, the question is, does an estate agent get paid even when they’re not responsible for selling your home? I’m afraid so, it’s very possible. Don’t be alarmed if estate agents try and unfairly squeeze every penny out of you they can, they’re only doing their job (even if they didn’t actually fulfil a service).
It’s [...]

Finding Tenants Without A Letting Agent- A Live Experiment (Part 1)

6 Comments Comments / Article written on 13 Jun 2008, and filed in the Marketing & Finding Tenants section

Ooooh, now this is going to be an interesting little experiment, in which I hope to put theory into practice.
A few months ago I wrote an article about how in a booming rental market (such as now) letting agents are a big, fat waste of money. I progressed to mention that all snake oil letting [...]

Sale-And-Rent-Back Scheme

0 Comments Comments / Article written on 12 Jun 2008, and filed in the Selling Property Tips section

Thousands of landlords are attempting to break into the sale-and-rent-back (Sarb) market as growing number of people face repossession.
Many say it’s a sport that preys on the weak. The game is simple: a homeowner gets on the property ladder with the help of a less than perfect mortgage package. The fixed term comes to an [...]

Another Day, Another Bullshit Call From An Estate Agent

7 Comments Comments / Article written on 10 Jun 2008, and filed in the I Dislike Estate Agents section

Yesterday I received the most pathetic phone call from an estate agent EVER. I’ve had a few bogus calls from estate agents in my time, but this one was straight out of the, “Lines to use when you’re struggling to sell fuck all” guide. I was actually cringing during the conversation because it was THAT [...]

The Shit I Hate About Being A Landlord

27 Comments Comments / Article written on 08 Jun 2008, and filed in the Ranting Landlord section

Over the past few years I’ve spent a large portion of time talking about the perks of being a landlord; consequently I’ve managed to neglect discussing the skid-marks of the profession. While I think being a Landlord is an awesome occupation for longterm investors, I’m still very much in touch with how God AWFUL the [...]

Smallest House In The World

26 Comments Comments / Article written on 03 Jun 2008, and filed in the Architecture/Design section

Since the launch of the Biggest House In The World article there’s been a lot of interest shown on the matter, so obviously my next natural step should be to weed out the smallest house in the world.
Now, this whole issue can be extremely subjective and messy. I mean, by definition, a “house” is simply [...]

Tips For Valuing Your Home

0 Comments Comments / Article written on 01 Jun 2008, and filed in the Selling Property Tips section

We’re a nation fixated with money and greed, and what better way to calculate our wealth than tallying up the value of our most valued asset- our homes? Whether you want to value your home for personal pleasure or for the prospect of selling your home, the best way to find an accurate answer is [...]

Tenant Guarantor Form

112 Comments Comments / Article written on 27 May 2008, and filed in the Free Landlord Forms section

What is a tenant guarantor form?
It’s a type of insurance that costs the Landlord nothing to put in place, but secures you against rent loss, damages and legal fees. The guarantor is someone that will vouch for your tenant, and is legally obliged to cover any costs that your tenant fails to meet. The Guarantor [...]

Property Inventory Form

11 Comments Comments / Article written on 25 May 2008, and filed in the Free Landlord Forms section

What is an inventory?
The Inventory is a listing of all the contents of a property and a record of the condition of each item. It’s also referred to as a “schedule of condition“. The form is designed to help monitor the condition of the items before a tenant moves in and just before a tenant [...]

House Price Slowdown Vs House Price Crash

3 Comments Comments / Article written on 22 May 2008, and filed in the Ranting Landlord section

It seems as though the nation has been bitten by the stupid bug. The symptom of the bug is complete inability to appreciate the difference between a “house price slowdown” and a “house price crash”. Have you been bitten?
In true scientific form; before diagnosing a problem, the source of the problem needs to be identified. [...]

Win Loads Of Sarah Beeny Books

14 Comments Comments / Article written on 21 May 2008, and filed in the Sarah Beeny section

There’s a huge following of people out there searching for all kinds of shit related to Sarah Beeny on a daily basis. Fortunately I rank quite highly for a pretty large index of keywords that involves the phrase “Sarah Beeny“, so I get a fair chunk of the traffic. Granted, most of the search terms [...]

Assured Shorthold Tenancy Agreement

121 Comments Comments / Article written on 19 May 2008, and filed in the Free Landlord Forms section

What is an Assured Shorthold Tenancy Agreement?
A tenancy agreement is a legal agreement in writing that sets out the rights and responsibilities of both landlord and tenant. It will contain details such as the length of the agreement, the rent payable, and what is and isn’t allowed in the property, such as pets.
The AST is [...]

Notice Of Rent Increase Form

3 Comments Comments / Article written on 18 May 2008, and filed in the Free Landlord Forms section

They say the average person thinks about sex every 3 seconds. The average landlord thinks about increasing rent every 2 seconds.
There’s going to be a time when every established landlord has to increase rent. Why? Inflation, fluctuating interest rates, newly introduced legal legislations that come with a price tag (e.g. tenancy deposit scheme) or personal [...]

Understanding Property Valuations And Structural Surveys

0 Comments Comments / Article written on 16 May 2008, and filed in the Buying Property Tips section

Once you’ve found a property that you’re interested in purchasing, secured the mortgage and have acquired the services of a conveyancing solicitor, you’re just about ready to start thinking about a structural survey.
What is a structural Survey?
It’s a report that is designed to satisfy a consumer that the property has no obvious structural defects. [...]

Coming To The End Of Your Fixed Rate Mortgage Period?

0 Comments Comments / Article written on 13 May 2008, and filed in the Mortgage Stuff section

More than one million people in the UK are going to face a sharp jump in their mortgage payments when they’re thrown out of their honeymoon fixed rate period, and put onto a standard variable rate.
The average fixed rate mortgage last year was 5.5%, the average standard variable rate is 8-9% at the moment. That [...]

Housing Slowdowns Are Temporary- Ride With The Tough Times, Don’t Rent

0 Comments Comments / Article written on 12 May 2008, and filed in the Ranting Landlord section

For those worrying about the recent drop in house prices- I urge you to think positively and ride with the tough times; visualise the bigger picture. Housing slowdowns and crashes aren’t unusual- they come and go like the wind passed through your anal-passage. Eventually they’ll be another housing boom and the nation will get whipped [...]

Top Mistakes I’ve Made As A Landlord

4 Comments Comments / Article written on 09 May 2008, and filed in the Good & Bad Landlord Practices section

They say the best way to progress in life is to learn from your own mistakes. For once, I think “they” might be onto something.
During my rather premature property escapades as a cocky, overconfident young buck I managed to get tangled in a series of elementary blunders that would even make Sarah Beeny shudder, and [...]

Tony Blair’s £4million Stately Home

5 Comments Comments / Article written on 06 May 2008, and filed in the Celebrity Homes section

Blair certainly isn’t worried about the housing slowdown; he’s just purchased himself a rather cool mansion in Wotton Underwood, Bucks, for a super cool £4 million.
There’s always been something about Tony Blair that I’ve liked. He carries this certain persona which comes across as rather charming. He’s that embarrassing dad that isn’t all that embarrassing, [...]

Can You Be Too Old To Invest In Property?

0 Comments Comments / Article written on 05 May 2008, and filed in the Property Investment Tips & Info section

It’s a pretty obvious question now I think about it, but interestingly, until last week no one had ever asked me whether there is an expiry date on property investors. And to be honest, I’ve never really thought it. But that’s most likely because I’m still hip and funky fresh. Man, I can already feel [...]

People Are Laughing At Property Investors Right Now Ha Ha

3 Comments Comments / Article written on 02 May 2008, and filed in the I Get Hate Mail For Being A Landlord section

My latest fan mail. Lovely
“Hi
I’ve been reading through your site and I’m sitting here laughing to myself because all your efforts will be pointless when the property crash comes and cleans you out. Doesn’t that bother you the fact you will have nothing left and the fact you are giving people false hope? Dont you [...]

Commonly Used Lies That Letting Agents Love To Feed Potential Tenants

0 Comments Comments / Article written on 30 Apr 2008, and filed in the Tenant Advice section

I’m not sure if I would put letting agents on the same par as estate agents, but if letting agents are behind, they’re not that far behind. Perhaps they’re not the same breed of predator, but they’ve definitely emerged from the same batch of spawn, Satan’s spawn. I’ve had my fair share of problems with [...]

Just Another Reason To Hate Estate Agents

2 Comments Comments / Article written on 29 Apr 2008, and filed in the I Dislike Estate Agents section

Ok, perhaps “hate” is a bit strong (or is it, really?), but there is definitely something about the tale I’m about to regurgitate which won’t help the reputation of estate agents. Well, one estate agency firm in particular, Foxtons. Who else could it have been, seriously?
In Foxtons defence- I’m not the type of person to [...]

What A Tenant Should Check Before Signing A Tenancy Agreement

13 Comments Comments / Article written on 25 Apr 2008, and filed in the Tenant Advice section

With the nation fearing a property crash, and with mortgage rates increasing, renting has never been so popular. That means more and more tenants are open to attack, to walk blindly into tenancy agreements that won’t always serve their best interest. Below is a checklist of things a tenant should check before agreeing to [...]

House Price Crash Forum Member Writes To The Bank Of England

0 Comments Comments / Article written on 22 Apr 2008, and filed in the Ranting Landlord section

I admire people that take proactive approaches to represent their stance on a certain subject they feel passionate about. Rally leaders, political figures, even hippy protestors in masses- those people make things happen. But when you’re witnessing a lone ranger outsourcing a feeble letter to a powerful organisation, which for part doesn’t even make sense, [...]

The Best And Worst Tenants

3 Comments Comments / Article written on 21 Apr 2008, and filed in the Marketing & Finding Tenants section

Yup, i’ll be looking for a new tenant this summer (most likely) because one of my tenant’s tenancy agreement contract is due to expire. It’s going to be a shame, because she’s given me no trouble whatsoever! Hopefully she’ll continue the contract, but I need to start thinking about recruiting if things don’t go as [...]

Property Investment Project Is Now On Facebook- Join The Revolution

0 Comments Comments / Article written on 19 Apr 2008, and filed in the Ranting Landlord section

Just a quick note for the regular readers- Property Investment Project now has a fan page on Facebook. Some of the more observant readers may have already noticed the Facebook banner on the right sidebar. I thought i’d take this opportunity to explain a little more about it. You know, just because I’m bored and [...]

Who’s To Blame For The Housing Crisis?

0 Comments Comments / Article written on 17 Apr 2008, and filed in the Property Comic Sketches section

Northern Rock Want Their Borrowers To Remortgage

3 Comments Comments / Article written on 13 Apr 2008, and filed in the Mortgage Stuff section

I already mentioned in a previous blog article that Northern Rock weren’t going to be offering their customers a competitive new deal when it comes to the end of their existing product term. However, it was all a tad wishy-washy because I was told by a competitor of Northern Rock, The Halifax. Well, a few [...]

Property Ladder With Sarah Beeny Is Back. Tell A Friend!

4 Comments Comments / Article written on 09 Apr 2008, and filed in the Sarah Beeny section

Just a quick reminder for all you Beeny/Property Ladder fans, a new season kicks off tonight: 20:00, Channel 4. I was nicely reminded by one of my wonderful forum member’s. Which leads me to also remind you all that we’ll be continuing to get our claws out after each episode and get our bitch on [...]

Documenting One Man’s Journey To Losing A Million By Leveraging Through Property

1 Comment Comments / Article written on 08 Apr 2008, and filed in the I Get Hate Mail For Being A Landlord section

Ok, here’s the oddest thing you’ll ever hear in your life; apparently me and my property projects aren’t entirely appreciated by the general public. Yeah, I know, I’m also finding it hard to believe that someone, let alone a group of people, could possibly hold any hostility against me and my projects. Regardless, due to [...]

Factors That Make Potential Property Buyers Walk Away

0 Comments Comments / Article written on 03 Apr 2008, and filed in the Buying Property Tips section

I previously wrote an article about Easily Fixable Features That Puts Buyers Off. Since then I decided to go one step further and dedicate a list of features that can essentially make buyers walk away because the problems aren’t all that superficial, consequently there is no easy antidote. These features should be noted before purchasing [...]