Renting forever..?

According to a recent poll by Barclays 44% of people think they will be renting FOREVER. 30% think they will be renting LONG TERM, and 26% think they will be renting SHORT TERM.  I'm not quite sure what long term and short term means in this poll, but I am sure what forever means!

It seems that we are not the home-owning country that Maggie Thatcher opened the way for.  Although many people aspire to own their own home, it seems to be a dream that remains a long way in the distance for most. So many young people are priced out of the market by the need for large deposits and secure incomes to qualify for a mortgage, it is no wonder that it remains a life goal that one day they might achieve. And for those who replied to the Barclays poll, one that they think they will never achieve. 

However we have also become a nation of 'spend now, pay later' junkies. Consumer credit is still cheap and plentiful and so in the absence of owning your own plot, perhaps you satiate the desire for roots by spending cash til it's going out of fashion.

Unfortunately that is not going to help to save for a deposit on a property! There are places in the UK where you can buy small and suitable 'starter' properties at not much cost. Ok so they're not perhaps the most desirable locations, and yes the interior may need moving into the 21st century, but that's why they're cheap. Yes you may have to compromise - but that is part of the growth process of learning about property. Knowing what is something worth compromising on to get a better deal later. 

It takes discipline, determination and time to do it, but it is possible to save for a deposit and to start at the very lowest rung of the property ladder. And from there, who knows where it will lead? 

If you write a plan, stick to it and rigorously work to make it happen, you can turn your forever into long-term, and your long-term into short term, and your short-term into NOW!

The Green Deal

The Green Deal is a government scheme to make houses and properties more energy efficient. I suppose this means the householder paying less for fuel (electricity and gas) due to extra insulation in lofts, walls or floors which then retain heat better, plus the installation of modern boilers which use less gas to heat the same amount of water, plus double glazing which also loses less heat from the house.

All fairly simple and self-explanatory. 

How the Green Deal works

You can make energy-saving improvements to your home or business without having to pay all the costs up front through the Green Deal.

Energy-saving improvements include:

• insulation - eg loft or cavity wall insulation
• heating
• draught-proofing
• double glazing



Then you too can use this logo! Smart!

• renewable energy technologies - eg solar panels or wind turbines

Getting involved

1. Get an assessment of your property - this will tell you what improvements you can make and estimate how much you could save on your energy bills.
2. Choose a Green Deal provider to carry out the work. You discuss with them what work you want done and whether the Green Deal is right for you.
3. If you go ahead with the improvements you must sign your Green Deal Plan - this is a contract between you and the provider stating what work will be done and how much it will cost. The provider will then arrange for a Green Deal installer to do the work.
4. Once the work is done, you’ll pay off the money in instalments through your electricity bill

You can get an assessment now, but work can’t start until 28 January 2013.

If you’re a landlord, you must get your tenant’s permission before you sign up, and if you’re a tenant you must get your landlord’s permission to sign up - this also applies to social housing.

Download a Quick Guide for Landlords here 

Top ten tips: Buy to let

Love this article from About Property.com

Thought you might like it too, so I have reproduced it here:

Buy-to-let is a hot topic at the moment, with lending on the up and more and more people choosing to become landlords.

While sales in the housing market are flat, the rental sector is booming, particularly in major cities like London and Manchester.

Average gross rental yields are far in advance of the interest you can earn in a savings account, but with that comes a challenge.

We've caught up with Nick Cooper, managing director of national letting agent Northwood.

He gives his top ten tips on how to be a winner from the buy-to-let boom.

1. Always research the market

Check local rental conditions and determine the types of renting in your area. Look for tell-tale signs that there’s a healthy rental market, like large company relocations, the opening of young/upmarket bars and shops. Don’t forget to consider the proximity of good schools and choose property with features that will appeal to the general market.

2. Decide on your target tenant

The kind of tenant you are hoping to rent to will influence the location and type of property you buy.  If you want to let to students, it will need to be close to the university or at least have good transport links to it. Don’t worry about luxury – it just needs to be clean and comfortable.

Families, on the other hand, are likely to have their own furniture and belongings so they will be more interested in ‘blank canvas’ properties which they can rent over a longer time period.

3. Look for bargains

You may be able to get a discount on a property if you can promise a quick sale or if you can pay in cash. Auctions can also be a prime place for property bargains too.

4. Ensure that the property is in sound condition

It seems obvious but it’s worth a reminder: Buyers should always visit all properties, pay for an independent survey and get a solicitor to check the paperwork.

5. Compare the mortgage market

Research the various buy-to-let mortgages on offer to find the one that’s best for you. Mortgage comparison tools enable would-be landlords to research and compare a comprehensive range of products and quotes from across the mortgage market and submit an application.

6. Account for every penny

Before you buy, make sure that the sums add up and don’t forget any extra ‘hidden’ costs.  As well as mortgage repayments, think about landlord insurance, gas safety certificates, maintenance fees etc.

Look ahead too and don’t just look at the present and near future. Try to calculate projections for five, ten, twenty years' time. You could use a rental income calculator to help with the sums.

7. Brush up on the Green Deal

The Green Deal is a government initiative aimed at improving the energy efficiency of properties, through the installation of energy efficient boilers, double glazing, draught proofing, loft or cavity wall insulation to name a few.

Under the Green Deal, landlords will be able to make energy efficiency improvements to their properties without having to pay for them upfront. Tenants will repay the cost of the measures through their energy bill savings whilst enjoying a more energy efficient home. Financing for the Green Deal will become available in early 2013.

8. Consider using a letting agent to manage your property

Agents can handle a range of letting-related jobs, charging commissions based on the level of workload that they take on: from simply finding a tenant through to fully managing the property.

Therefore the right choice of letting option for any landlord depends on the level of responsibility, time, energy & risk that they personally are prepared to take on, compared to paying for a letting agent to do it for them.

9. Embrace the opportunity to have your rent guaranteed

The most common day-to-day risk to the landlord is having a vacant property or a tenant who stops paying. The most recent statistics from the National Landlord Association revealed that 49 per cent of landlords have experienced rental arrears in the last 12 months with the average void period lasting for 69 days – more than two months rent.

Northwood’s guaranteed rent service is a minimum 12 month contract whereby Northwood effectively becomes the tenant: it guarantees fixed monthly payments to the landlord, regardless of whether the property is vacant or whether the tenant stops paying.

10. Take your time

Investing in several properties can spread risk, but invest in too many of the same type, in the same area and you may risk oversupplying the demand.

If your first buy-to-let investment has gone well and you’ve caught the property bug, keep a level head about investing in more. Remember the points above, think carefully about your next investment and thus reap the rewards of buy-to-let investment.

Be warned - do your homework first!!

As anyone who went to school with me will testify, homework was not my strong point. When asked why I had not completed a particular piece of work, I would launch into a pre-prepared speech exonerating the values of verbal debate over written expression, explaining how homework had lost its value in an age of discussion, where an era of feminist thought was leading girls into professions of the highest calibre where only verbal repartee characterised true proficiency.  This did not fool my teachers though, and I had to do some quite expert and creative editing before my parents saw my school report. Much of it contained the phrase 'needs to stop talking'.

Nowadays, though, I can see the importance of homework. No not essays and the such like, useful though they may be in structuring thought and language. Homework in this case, which is akin to research. It should be a familiar and necessary process for anyone considering becoming a landlord. Homework about the area, the possible rental yields, the preparedness if things go wrong, the systems you will utilise to manage the property effectively. If you don't do this and jump in with both feet before you're really ready, you may have some problems later down the line which no amount of banter can talk you out of!

http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/mortgageshome/article-2236164/Buy-let-landlords-risk-left-pocket-fail-simple-checks.html