If you aspire to be a buy to let king then take a leaf out of this prince’s book:
1
Aim for a 10 per cent yield. If the annual rent is £5000, add one nought (£50,000) and try not to pay more than that.
2
Don’t be scared to borrow off banks, credit cards, friends and family. Always put down the least deposit possible. Preserve your own hard cash. I made my wealth borrowing and reinvesting using other people’s money.
3
Never speculate. If they say they’re going to build a train station and prices will double, ignore them! It is not a guarantee. If a property makes money now, it will make money in the future.
4
Don’t get emotional over property. It’s about the Cash, not the Laura Ash.
5
Never furnish a property. The fridge will go wrong; the chairs will get broken and you’ll have to fix them.
6
Never refurbish a property. Don’t be swayed by all those magic makeover programmes on TV. Invariably you’ll overestimate the selling price and underestimate both the time and cost of refurbishing. Do the bare minimum.
7
Do not pay for expensive property seminars. Invest in a few good books (especially by me). You’ll learn far more and save yourself a couple of grand.
8
Do your research. Use the net, visit the area, see what the agents are selling and what the letting agents are letting. You can quickly gauge if the figures stack up.
9
Be an individual thinker. Letting agents know what they can let properties for and know about collecting rents, not about making money. If an agent says you’ll never let a property in that area, don’t believe them. There is a housing shortage in this country.
10
NEVER EVER GIVE UP!