Mary Berry's Letting Agent

I went around to a friend’s house over the weekend and we were looking at some old photos I had taken. I love these photos she said, you must have a really good camera? Not really I said, it's one that cost a couple of hundred quid and anyone can buy it on the high street.

This got me thinking – would anyone ever say to Mary Berry - that’s a great cake you’ve baked, you must have a fantastic oven? Or would you say to Alan Titchmarsh ‘that's a fantastic garden design you must have a lovely spade?’

 

Would owning Rembrandt’s paint brushes mean you could paint like a Dutch Master? Would borrowing Ray Mears pocket knife mean you could lead a survival team into the jungle? What if you had Freddy Flintoffs’ cricket bat or Jamie Vardy's football boots - Does that guarantee you a ton of runs or a net full of goals?

 

What is it that ‘makes the difference’? The art of anything be it baking cakes, designing gardens or leading a survival team, is embedded in the skills and quality of an expert. These skills are honed through hours of preparation, practice, and dedication.

 

Even then not just anyone can bake the best cake. It is not simply about the ingredients or the oven - it's that magic alchemy that some people have and some do not. If I had Eric Clapton’s guitar or Stevie Wonders harmonica would I sound like either of them? Nope, not a chance. If I had Terry Wogan’s studio complete with headphones, microphone and swivel chair would I suddenly turn into the lilting mellifluous Irish Demi God of radio? (God rest his soul by the way). No I most certainly would not.

 

The same could be said for the world of the letting agent. Anyone can put a board up outside a property, link up to Rightmove, put an advert in the paper and ‘hey presto’ the property is let. It is how you achieve the let and what you do when the tenants are in there what really counts. Anyone can spout about Section 21 Notices, EPC Certificates, Damp etc… and  sound like they know what they are talking about. At Rainbow Lettings we have spent thousands of hours over a decade with hundreds of landlords practising our art in a bid to try and provide the best possible letting agent. We aim to make a difference which is felt where it matters – in the pockets of landlords and in the well-being of tenants.

 

We might not make the best cakes in the world, but we do have the ingredients that go together to make an exceedingly good letting agents.

Landlords are you unlucky in love?

Landlords are you looking for a long term relationship with a tenant that truly respects your property? 

Perhaps you are a tenant looking for a short term fling in a fancy waterfront property? 

Perhaps you are a landlord on the rebound from a previous relationship where your  tenant just didn't live up to your hopes? 

Are you a tenant not loved or appreciated by your previous landlord? 

If so maybe your Letting Agent should be helping.......

Letting Agents often play the role of ‘Cupid’ as they match landlords and their properties with tenants.. You could even say we are a Dating Agent for both!

Just like any dating agency you can cook up a ‘match made in heaven’ or a ‘match made in hell’. You can get it right or you can get it oh so very wrong! Lettings Agents are little different…..

Under the pressure of targets from above, some have the ‘speed dating’ approach – pack the property with viewings, hope someone will stick and worry about the outcome later! Others fail to interview the prospective match properly and in doing so miss the most critical and obvious information. Is it little wonder that cracks show in the relationship and tenancies fail at the first hurdle!

Any relationship takes working on. There are highs and lows and rocky  moments along the way. Is your letting agent up to managing these moments for you?

We do our job properly, we vet tenants thoroughly and we look after properties as if they were our own. We nurture the landlord and tenant relationship. Like a critical friend we intervene when things are going wrong. We are not frightened to talk plainly when it matters. Managing your property matters. Looking after the landlord and tenant relationship matters.

Sadly we currently have too many good quality tenants and not enough handsome properties to match them with. It reminds me of all those parties when I was younger – plenty of lads but too few girls.

If you are a landlord and can help with this mismatch of supply and demand we would be delighted to hear from you. We would be even more delighted to get hold of your property!

Property Investment Spot

For Sale through Stratton Creber Estate Agents at £125,000

Arwenack Street Falmouth

Click the link below for full agents details.

http://www.strattoncreber.co.uk/buy/property/1-bedroom-flat-in-falmouth,tr11-ref-3634698/

Situated in the heart of the old town and moments from the quayside, restaurants and shops this is one of only a handful of properties available for sale £125,000 and under in the last 3 months in Falmouth.

This one bedroom property comprises open plan lounge/kitchen/diner double bedroom and bathroom.

This apartment will achieve a rental of £595 PCM The gross return on investment based on an asking price purchase would be 5.5%

The Zoopla House Price God suggests that prices have risen by just over 1.5% in the last year for flats in this area.

Tenants make for poor Gardeners!

 

Mary Mary quite contrary how does your garden grow?

 

Well in the land of the tenant often not with silver bells, cockle shells and pretty maids all in a row! More like rampant weeds, misshapen bushes and pathways overgrown. It is a fact that rarely does the average tenant look after gardens and outside space as well as the average homeowner.

 

At the end of a tenancy a house can be cleaned, a carpet can be changed and paintwork and walls can be spruced up fairly easily. However it may take many months to bring a garden back to its former glory. A garden is the face of a property the first thing that you see; a poorly maintained garden can lose you a tenant, reduce the rental value and can lead to an uncomfortable dispute with the on going tenant. Alan Titchmarsh, Monty Don and God bless him local favourite Percy Thrower would be less than impressed with the efforts of many.

 

Landlords and garden lovers, the way to avoid a problem (particularly for the larger garden) is to simply provide a gardener in the first place. You choose the gardener and you decide on the frequency of the visits; in doing so you then ensure the quality is maintained. Given that houses with gardens are like 'gold dust' at the moment, you incorporate the cost of this into any rental negotiation. The alternative is that you split the obligation and give the tenant a very clear remit for maintenance. For example to cut the grass, weed the borders and clear the pathways. Write into the tenancy that if this is not adhered to, you reserve the right to employ a gardener and specify the additional cost.

 

To limit a dispute take plenty of photographs of the garden before the tenancy starts and ensure that you frequently inspect. Document and communicate any dissatisfaction and agree a way forward before it is beyond a resolution. Avoid pets particularly dogs, be wary of trampolines and be cynical about any tenant who claims to be a gardening God (or Goddess). Divine intervention, a lot of time and money is the only thing that can help your garden then.

 

If you want help drafting a tenancy agreement that tightens up the garden obligations then please call by and have a chat.

What makes a Good Landlord?

Our last article looked at the reasons why ordinary people become landlords. It concentrated on the opportunity for individuals to take control over their investment future by buying a property of their choosing. It reflected on the solidity of buying ‘bricks and mortar’, set against a backdrop of increasing property prices and a trend towards renting locally.

 

 

Many potential landlords are put off becoming one, because they perceive they are either not made of the ‘right stuff’ or that being a landlord is fraught with problems. The misconception is you have to be ‘hard-nosed’, ‘rhino-skinned’ and capable of bulldozing your way through potential problems without a care. This is not true. They also perceive that there is a problem waiting for them around every corner, and that any income benefit will be offset by the hassle of managing a property. This is also not true. Certainly if you are a good landlord or you employ a good agent then with a little luck you should most of the time be able to sit back and enjoy the income and other comforts of being one.

 

There isn’t a one fits all description of what constitutes a good landlord since one person’s ‘good’ is another person’s ‘average’. However there are some positive traits which most of would recognise. Indeed the question of what qualities you need to be a good landlord, could easily be substituted for what makes a good boss, teacher or parent. Take it as a given that good landlords are those that abide by their legal and contractual obligations. A really good landlord is one whose ‘mettle’ is tested by facing a problem and in dealing with it are tolerant, understanding, even-handed and decent with it. Further they tend to act swiftly, by resolving a problem where a reasoned cost-effective solution is obvious and readily available.

Good landlords like good teachers, bosses and parents are respected by those around them. In this instance they are respected and trusted by their tenants, their neighbours and those contractors that work with them.

 

The best landlords balance and weigh to a nicety the interests of themselves with those of their tenants. This is not easy since your own standards are not necessarily those of your tenants.  Likewise you may have to act contrary to your own natural instincts; sometimes you will have to show caution where you are carefree by nature or vice versa.  Like all good parents/teachers and managers the ability to use common sense, not to get too emotional and to judge the situation on its merits will usually serve you well.

 

Being a landlord is not for everyone. However if you are decent and reasonable and you offer a good quality property, more often than not you will be rewarded with a good tenant who reciprocates your own qualities. After all ‘if you throw a pebble in the water’ don’t you see your own reflection?

 

Investment Spot of the Day

Packsaddle Penryn

For Sale through Laskowski & Co Estate Agents at £179,950

Click the link below for full agents details.

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-50953973.html

From the photos this 3 bedroom end terrace is clearly beautifully presented throughout and benefits from modern kitchen and bathroom suite and very good general decoration.

Situated in a quiet location with open outlook to the rear and two car parking spaces to the front it will appeal equally to a family or professional couple.

Although the Tremough Campus side of Penryn it is a quiet area traditionally favoured by non-students.

The rental on this property would be £750 PCM. The return on investment based on an asking price purchase should be 5%. 

The Zoopla House Price God suggests that prices have risen by just over 4% in the last year.

As a tidy, modern three bedroom house it is worth at least a look. In the current rental market you should have decent family tenants queuing up for this all day long!

Why Become a Landlord?

Most of us aspire to better ourselves in one way or another. It is a human trait that has existed since man took his first breath. For our caveman ancestors it might have meant a bigger cave, a safer spot, a more elevated position, or perhaps even a sea view! Fundamentally it was about well-being and survival. Today home ownership is not a survival issue; it is however about financial security as we endeavour to put a ‘roof over our families head.'

 

 

 

It is one thing being a home owner, but what about a multiple home owner and investment landlord?

 

There are currently more than 2 million private sector landlords owning approximately one in five UK homes! Government statistics indicate that this will increase to one in three homes in some parts of the country. The trend towards renting locally is slightly higher than the national average. It is inevitably skewed by 'poor' wages leading to lack of affordability. Supply is also constricted by second home ownership and limited new house builds. This hints at the entrenchment of the trend towards renting.

If its financial security that you are looking for then history would teach us that there is no better investment than property. After all an investment in bricks and mortar should be, ‘safe as houses’?

 

In 1966 my parents bought their house in Redannick in Truro for the princely sum of £3000. In 1990 it sold for £88,000.  Checking the 'Zoopla House Price God', that same semi would conservatively be worth more than £250,000 now. Even allowing for inflation this represents a significant net gain.

 

Few  of us will  take any joy in the fact that a great number of hard working people cannot afford to buy their own home, let alone invest in a second or third. As individuals there is little we can do to influence this. Inheritance, luck, choice and the lottery of life determines these things.

 

The opportunity of being a landlord does not make for bad people or money grabbing capitalists. It gives ordinary people a calculated chance for financial stability and to control their own investment destiny. Further, by buying property locally, and becoming a landlord you have a chance to ensure its quality and fair rent for the current generation of tenants - your children, grandchildren, friends, neighbours and acquaintances; you also enable them to put a roof over their heads. What is more, your investment down the track, may even enable your children to raise a down payment on a mortgage and continue the cycle of home ownership that is currently beyond the reach of many.

 

The choices to make and the rewards to gain are significant ones.  Do I downsize and release equity to purchase? What do I do with the pension money I have earned from a lifetime of working? What do I do with inheritance money? Do I forgo the foreign family holiday for the next 5 or 10 years? Do I put the kids through private school? OR - Do I buy a rental property?

 

 

These decisions are ‘tug of war decisions’. There are upsides and downsides to each. There is no right or wrong answer; what is important, is what is right for the individual. History is never a certain indication of a trend continuing. However house prices in the region are reckoned to go up at least 20% in the next three years (Savills Quarterly Report). The rental sector is growing too.

 

The difficult choice may be made easier if you consider one certainty. No one is going to look after your interests, your health, and your wealth in old age better than you.

 

Take the plunge and become a landlord.  The water is lovely and warm.


Next Time we look at what makes a good landlord