A Beginners Guide to Property Investment

May 24, 2010 at 5:20 am

A Beginners Guide to Property Investment

January 10th, 2010

Property investment has greatly increased in popularity over recent years. Lenders offering tailored mortgage products have helped feed this ever-growing industry. Many individuals, groups and companies are now being advised to invest in UK and Overseas property as an alternative to using conventional pension funds. Amazing returns on investment have been realized. Rather than making a profit on the capital you invest, the use of mortgages allows profits to be made on the full property value with comparably minimal capital outlay.

It is plain to see how just one of the above factors would be sufficient to stir great interest in property investment.

No matter what your reason is for choosing property investment, there are several crucial factors to consider before searching for the right property.

No matter what your reason is for choosing property investment, there are several crucial factors to consider before searching for the right property.

There are many methods which can be applied to property investment, dependent on your goals and what you want to achieve. Without going into further depth and variation, this can be broken down into two general aims:

1. Buy to Sell – Buying and selling investment property within the short term for profit.
2. Buy to Let – Buying and letting to achieve a rental income and accumulate equity, normally over the mid to long term.

It is important to decide which route to go down, as this will very much depend on the property most suitable to invest in and how best to set this up.

Property investment can be extremely rewarding but should only be entered into with due care and consideration. There are many crucial factors to consider which will determine which direction you will move in when considering the endless property investment possibilities.

Careful consideration must be given to location. You must decide if you wish to invest in your local area which you may be more familiar with, or invest in a current “hot spot” which may provide more attractive investment options.

The more adventurous investor may be interested in overseas property investment. A great deal of care and research should be given to any investment property proposition, particularly when looking overseas where the purchase process, tax liabilities, etc. could be very different to the UK.
Property price must also be considered, with widely varying properties available at all levels of investment. Investors tend to be guided by the capital they wish to invest in any one property.

A mortgage broker or lender will be able to advise you on how much you can borrow to invest in property, along with any further costs or fees involved. A Solicitor can also advise you on the legal costs, disbursements (local search fees, etc.) and stamp duty cost if applicable.

Once these factors have been considered, the next step in property investment would be to search for suitable properties and undertake the essential research to minimize risk and maximize profit.

You can never do too much research. Speak to local agents to get feedback from the perspective of property professionals.

Properties which are ideal for investment will inevitably sell quickly. Time consuming research can unfortunately result in astute investors missing out on some great investment opportunities. The internet can be a great place to carry out a large portion of the required research in a fraction of the time.

The above serves well as an introduction to property investment and the first steps which should be undertaken. By gaining a good perspective of your goals and aims and by not deviating from your chosen investment plan, you should form a solid basis for successful property investment.

This guest post was written by Dan Chamberlain. If you have any questions or responses to this article, please post a comment below.