It’s not the property which is of importance, but the location. Often, when clients tell me they wish to buy a property for investment, and perhaps for their children to live in the future, I always advise them to keep the two separate, as the objectives are different.
Investment should be done with an objective. When it comes to investments the aim is to make as much money possible, in the shortest amount of time. When it comes to living in the property, it is a lifestyle choice and emotional choice, not necessarily one based on cost. However, in this rare occasion, after listening to our client, I must admit it made a lot of sense. His two children work, one is based in Canary Wharf and the other in the West End. Therefore, this location actually seemed ideal, as well as being in probably the hottest hotspot in London.
The property is dated and requires some modernisation. It will be lived in initially, and then turned into a Buy to Let in the future, when the occupants have flown the nest.
Residential mortgage rates are cheaper than BTL rates. The money made on this investment will be purely on the capital growth, whilst his children are living there. The rent achievable will increase in time, but it will be the strong rise of the underlying asset which will make a good amount of money. The property was purchased for £365K, and my prediction is that within three years it will easily be worth £450K. This is an uplift of nearly £100K. If we look at this from a return on investment point of view, you would be looking to double your money in three years.
There needs to be some restraint put on the decoration of the property, as ultimately it will be a BTL property after a few years. Therefore, to go overboard with the décor according to one’s taste and whims is perhaps not the best idea.
The work needs to be done in a moderate way. An option we will be exploring for our client, is getting permission on this property for a rear extension and a loft conversion. Once this is done, we would look to convert the whole property into a 5/6 bedroom HMO. Being so close to the station, we believe the demand for low priced accommodation will be high, both from the West End and Canary Wharf.
Currently, we have also confirmed another small deal in this vicinity, for only £255K. It’s a two bed flat requiring some minor modernisation. Get in touch soon, if you would like to secure this property.
Agony Agent is here to help!
Q: Can I rent out my parking space?
A: Renting out your parking space can be a great way of earning a bit of extra income. If parking is difficult where you live, you could end up earning around £100 a month, and could even reach as much as £250 per month in certain areas.
You can rent out your parking space as long as it is owned by you, and not by a landlord or third party. Remember, it doesn’t have to be a driveway. Renting out a parking space in the underground parking of a block of flats is also very popular.
If you rent out one parking space on your driveway, you can, of course, still use the other. You could also rent out the parking space for a set amount of time (e.g. office hours), so you can use it at other times. There are always pros and cons, but with a short-term rental like this you can easily change your mind with short notice and have your parking space back.
Richard Bond
INSIDE OUT
Managing the Ego
Without realising it, we tend to want to be understood before we are willing to try to understand the other person.
I had a problem with a bank over a property loan once. Unfortunately, the bank adopted a very bureaucratic approach to solving the problem. The situation was exacerbated by their aggressive and haughty tone.
I had a choice to make. I felt under attack. I could sense how their approach was hurting my ego, incensing me and goading me into retaliating. I reflected, however, that these feelings of egoic hurt are transitory and that a practical solution was more important than balancing the quota of hurt and retaliation.
Therefore, I spent time separating in my mind the tangible elements of the situation from the subtle emotional waves that could interfere with my thinking and my ability to communicate lucidly and powerfully.
One of the modern world’s challenges to ego management is time. Our use of modern technology makes us so reactive to events that we give ourselves too little time for reflection and meditation. We fail to appreciate that an orderly inner world produces a balanced and well-ordered outer world.
In the case of the bank I did two things. I gave myself the time to be introspective on the matter. I also acknowledged the pain my ego felt from the bruising approach of the bank. However, I refused to accept this ego as my true identity, and decided to act from a place of choice that I did not have to identify with the pain that my ego felt and, certainly,
I did not have to act from this place.
We navigated through the problems, and the issues with the bank were fully resolved.
Abraham Goldberg
