martinharvey Posted August 31, 2006 Report Share Posted August 31, 2006 I realise that everyone will have different views on this but as a first timer to buy to lets I am a bit daunted by a few areas, firstly have tried to do research on areas by looking a available properties and talking to agents, but I cannot discover a way of checking if there is a genuin demand for the type of property i want to buy. Every time I speak to an agent they always say there is demand but then they would would'nt they they want more on their books !! What is a good way of making sure that I don't buy something that stays empty. Secondly about agents, I get told by them that there are so many laws in place and with proper reference checks they recommend that no-one does it themselves (again they would say that) on the other hand being new to this, I have found you can reference check people quite easily (for what it's worth) and anyone can check employers references but again no guarantee they will keep their job, I also understand that it is quite easy to get of a standard good rental contract, so wonder what are the benefits of an agent as a line advert for your property must be quite cheap ?? Any thoughts or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trenners Posted September 1, 2006 Report Share Posted September 1, 2006 Hi Martin, A lot of questions and issues to discuss here. Where are you based ? When deciding what buy-to-let property to purchase you should take the advice of local letting agents as they are very much in tune with what will easily let in your specific geography. This doesn't mean that you need to appoint any of them once you have received their free advice. Once you own the property then you have a few options relating to who lets and manages the property. 1) Use a main stream estate / letting agent, 2) Do it yourself or 3) Something in between .... I never favour using estate / letting agents. They sit in their offices, do very little, and charge (for what they do) quite high fees that seriously eat into the buy-to-let profit. I know that they will claim that the whole process is tricky and that they are ARLA registered - but most of this is marketing hype. DIY is also not a good idea because not only have you got to find, reference check and move in your tenants - you've also got to do all the legal stuff and be "on call" when the taps start leaking ! I use a small local company that provides a professional letting service. They are not a high street estate agent but they are established and trusted in the local market. They manage the property "as if it were their own" and advise on all aspects of residential letting. Hope that helps ........ Mark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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