Property Blog [ Page 6 ]

Adding Someone To Your Mortgage

14 Jul 2008 / Mortgage Stuff / 0 Comments

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 [...]

I Just Got Cheaper Home Insurance

10 Jul 2008 / Landlord Money & Saving Costs / 0 Comments

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), [...]

Saving Vs Make Mortgage Overpayments, And Negative Equity

08 Jul 2008 / Mortgage Stuff / 0 Comments

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?

04 Jul 2008 / Ranting Landlord / 0 Comments

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. Now, there’s 2 points I want to drag up about this verbal vomit: [...]

Renting To Avoid A Property Chain Disaster

01 Jul 2008 / Buying Property Tips / 0 Comments

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 [...]

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

28 Jun 2008 / Marketing & Finding Tenants / 3 Comments

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?

23 Jun 2008 / Selling Property Tips / 0 Comments

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). [...]

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

13 Jun 2008 / Marketing & Finding Tenants / 6 Comments

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 [...]

Sale-And-Rent-Back Scheme

12 Jun 2008 / Selling Property Tips / 0 Comments

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 [...]

Another Day, Another Bullshit Call From An Estate Agent

10 Jun 2008 / I Dislike Estate Agents / 7 Comments

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

08 Jun 2008 / Ranting Landlord / 28 Comments

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

03 Jun 2008 / Architecture/Design / 38 Comments

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 was 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

01 Jun 2008 / Selling Property Tips / 0 Comments

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

27 May 2008 / Landlord Forms / 160 Comments

What is a Tenant Guarantor Form? A Guarantor form acts as a legal piece of insurance to protect the landlord against rental loss, damages and any ensuing legal fees that can be incurred by your tenant. A “Guarantor” is typically a friend or family member of the tenant and has agreed to vouch for the [...]

Landlord Inventory Form

25 May 2008 / Landlord Forms / 15 Comments

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

House Price Slowdown Vs House Price Crash

22 May 2008 / Ranting Landlord / 3 Comments

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 [...]

Win Loads Of Sarah Beeny Books

21 May 2008 / Sarah Beeny / 14 Comments

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

19 May 2008 / Landlord Forms / 154 Comments

What is an Assured Shorthold Tenancy Agreement? A tenancy agreement is a legal contract between landlord and tenant, . It maybe written or oral. The agreement contains the terms and conditions of the tenancy, such as the length of the agreement, the rent payable, and what is and isn’t allowed in the property, such as [...]

Notice Of Rent Increase Form – Section 13

18 May 2008 / Landlord Forms / 3 Comments

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 [...]

Understanding Property Valuations And Structural Surveys

16 May 2008 / Buying Property Tips / 3 Comments

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 [...]

Coming To The End Of Your Fixed Rate Mortgage Period?

13 May 2008 / Mortgage Stuff / 0 Comments

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. [...]

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

12 May 2008 / Ranting Landlord / 0 Comments

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

09 May 2008 / Good & Bad Landlord Practices / 4 Comments

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, [...]

Tony Blair’s £4million Stately Home

06 May 2008 / Celebrity Homes / 5 Comments

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 [...]

Can You Be Too Old To Invest In Property?

05 May 2008 / Property Investment Tips & Info / 0 Comments

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

02 May 2008 / I Get Hate Mail For Being A Landlord / 3 Comments

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? [...]

Commonly Used Lies That Letting Agents Love To Feed Potential Tenants

30 Apr 2008 / Tenant Advice / 3 Comments

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

29 Apr 2008 / I Dislike Estate Agents / 2 Comments

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 [...]

What A Tenant Should Check Before Signing A Tenancy Agreement

25 Apr 2008 / Tenant Advice / 14 Comments

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 any [...]

House Price Crash Forum Member Writes To The Bank Of England

22 Apr 2008 / Ranting Landlord / 0 Comments

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 Types Of Tenants

21 Apr 2008 / Marketing & Finding Tenants / 6 Comments

The thing about finding good tenants is that it’s all about odds. Granted, you have to be one assuming son-of-a-bitch and play the game of odds. For example, the odds of getting trouble from an employed professional worker compared to an unemployed bum are extremely slim. Of course, that won’t always be the case, but [...]

Property Investment Project Is Now On Facebook- Join The Revolution

19 Apr 2008 / Ranting Landlord / 0 Comments

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?

17 Apr 2008 / Property Comic Sketches / 0 Comments

Northern Rock Want Their Borrowers To Remortgage

13 Apr 2008 / Mortgage Stuff / 3 Comments

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!

09 Apr 2008 / Sarah Beeny / 4 Comments

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

08 Apr 2008 / I Get Hate Mail For Being A Landlord / 1 Comment

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

03 Apr 2008 / Buying Property Tips / 1 Comment

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 [...]

Property Seminars Are A Waste Of Time And Money

30 Mar 2008 / Ranting Landlord / 2 Comments

Yeah, I said it, and I’ll say it again. Property Seminars are a big, fat waste of time and money. Pffft. I went to one on Friday for one reason, and one reason only, and it sure as hell wasn’t to learn anything new; it was so I could mumble about my experience on here. [...]

Landlord Property Inspection

25 Mar 2008 / Good & Bad Landlord Practices / 0 Comments

Here’s a friendly reminder for all landlord’s to regularly carry out inspections on their properties. Unfortunately, it’s easy to slip into a mindset of a lazy relaxed landlord. A lot of landlords are kept satisfied as long as their tenants make their rent payments on time. If only life was so easy. Sadly, “collecting rent” [...]

How To Paint A Front Door

22 Mar 2008 / Property Development / 1 Comment

Right, so I got an email the other day about someone enquiring about how to paint a front door. Problem is, I’ve never really self-proclaimed my expertise as being a general renovation handyman. In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever claimed to be an expect in any property related field. However, whenever I get an [...]