SALES START EARLY - 2 bed in Kingsthorpe -£160,000

I'm unsure if anyone's Christmas shopping includes a 2 bed house in Kingsthorpe, but if it does I may have just the thing for you!
I had this one put under my nose this week - what looks to be a very well presented 2 bedroom property, already tenanted at £750PCM and on the market at £175,000 which would be about right for something that's immaculate. EXCEPT the vendor apparently has his eye on something else in London and needs his money out of this so £160,000 may seal the deal if someone can genuinely move quickly! For something that's immaculate in this area that's cheap.
richard.baker@belvoir.co.uk if you're keen to discuss this further.

INTERNET AGENTS

why are listing prices always high?
why paying up front doesn't work. 

Property to Sell? How's the local market?

My Sunday newspaper paints a story of woe - property prices down up to 10% in some places apparently and transaction levels very low. All examples quoted within the M25 as usual. So I thought I'd turn my lap top on and look at actual statistics in the last few weeks and see how things are actually shaping up in Northampton.

TRANSACTION LEVELS

At this time of year, we expect things to be slow. This weekend even the most dedicated of investors is out investing in a Christmas tree, so it's not a period when we expect to be agreeing a record number of sales. As such the number of enquiries we're getting about properties that are for sale is low - very little interest being shown across the board and what interest exists is not coming from private purchasers - again to be expected as people aren't thinking about their next property in early December - they are thinking about Christmas and all that comes with it. 

What's interesting though is that the number of sales agreed, per viewing, is high. It's REALLY high actually - we've agreed as many sales as we would expect to, just off a reduced number of enquiries. So buyer quality is good and it's astute investors who are taking advantage of a quiet market and snapping things up - 3 in 4 sales over the last 3 months have been to investor purchasers. 

PROPERTY PRICES

There's some definite caution in the market at the moment which I suspect is brought about by the political uncertainty we hear about on a daily basis. This has been the case for a while - people are thinking carefully about property purchasing decisions, which sounds a strange thing to say(!) but is basically highlighting that there have been periods in the past where people jumped in more freely. 

But importantly sales prices are NOT yet going backwards. It's been the case for a while that actual SALE prices are less than listing prices - this is mainly due to agents competing for business and properties ending up listed for far more than they should be - but the price they end up selling at hasn't changed. The market currently is sitting level - not rising or falling for most properties. 

What we have seen of late is price reductions (as the over priced properties get reduced to a level they will sell at) and the privately owned agencies taking more care about the prices at which they are prepared to accept instructions - if it's no sale : no fee, they want to be able to sell what they are listing - common sense. There still remains an issue with some agents over-valuing but this is mainly restricted now to the corporately owned ones where staff are incentivised to list new properties, and where targets for new stock are fundamental - as such their staff are more likely to agree to anything to get the keys. Or of course the internet agents who get paid up front, and as such don't really bother about whether the asking price is realistic. 

THE OUTLOOK

Under usual conditions we'd expect the market to speed up in the New Year. Traditionally there's a surge of private individuals looking to either sell property, or buy it - the New Year brings a fresh impetus for them to get things like this sorted. This year may be slightly different with BREXIT looming in the background but I'm remaining fairly bullish and have recently bought another property myself which shows I'm not overly concerned whatever our future relationship with Europe. Interest rates remain fairly low, the shortage of property remains fairly high, and I know how many people I speak to who have funds to buy and are currently biding their time - if something happens to reassure them, they and others like them will all jump in and upward movement could well resume. Over to you Mrs May!

EARLY CHRISTMAS PRESENT - £90,000

There's not been much around recently that has stood out as worth sharing, but this one certainly falls into that category - I'd almost go as far as calling it a no-brainer. 
It's a 2 bed ex Local Authority flat in Thorplands. We rent several of these and you'll have seen numerous on this blog over the years - currently in decent condition £625-£650 is the going rate for quickly securing a decent working tenant. 
This one is advertised at £90k. It's clearly dated but even once you've finished the works you're going to end up with a return of over 7% before charges. And speaking of charges these are usually reasonable as the freeholder is the Local Authority. It seems that this flat even comes with it's own private garden which is a further advantage. We've seen nice examples of these selling for over £110,000 in recent months so there's definitely some money in this for someone.

If you want to discuss further, email me - richard.baker@belvoir.co.uk

YOU COULD DO MUCH WORSE, £150,000 - tenanted 2 bed house

There's a fair number of 2 bed Victorian terraces advertised for sale currently with prices starting at around the £150,000 mark. When you dig further you generally find you're picking up something that's in need of work - if you want something that is genuinely 'ready to let' you need to spend £165,000 or more.
That's why this one, I think, is the exception. It's in Cambridge Street, Semilong and is yours for £150,000. The condition is good - the walls are smoothly plastered (the major bug-bear with Victorian Terraces), the kitchen and bathroom are modern, and the decor is neutral and clean. Even the garden is properly finished. What's more it comes with a tenant already in it - a reliable tenant paying £675PCM. We've actually managed this property for a decade and whilst there have been running repairs as there are with all properties, there have been no ongoing / repeat problems - it's solid.
So as the title says, you could do much worse! I saw an investor earlier this week who had just completed on 2x Victorian Terraces in the same area and was starting the process of upgrading them. Both were in worse condition than this one, and both had cost him more.

GOOD BUY : £135,000 all in - they are still out there!

At a networking event earlier this week I was being told by a potential investor that there were no good deals out there, and even an average 2 bed house costs £160,000 these days. Not quite true - it's certainly the case that there's a load of very average properties getting sold, or sitting around at this sort of money - but if you're quick off the mark there are also other good deals to be had.
One of my landlords bought this at the start of July - a 2 bed freehold house in a middling area. It was fairly grubby and needed upgrading in a number of areas - they paid £125,000 for it.
4 weeks and £10,000 later, it's been upgraded throughout and a tenant is moving in at £700PCM. The owner hasn't done a thing - we've sorted everything out for them. There are some pictures below of how it's changed. Their total cost is £135,000. Now remembering that even something average sells for £150,000, they are sitting on a well presented property that I could easily sell tomorrow for £155,000 - so they've made some money before the tenant has moved in.
And there have been similar properties advertised in recent weeks - other cheap 2 bed houses, all in poor condition but all of modern construction so easy to upgrade - very little potential for issues with damp, roof leaks etc. These will all rent seamlessly once brought up to standard and will be worth more than has been spent on them - mainly because most people will pay more for something that doesn't need any work. My view is that in the current market things like this represent the best buys available from a financial perspective - they are freehold, very rentable, and at the bottom end in terms of budget. Whilst I don't like the term 'Below Market Value' it's only with something like this that you can end up with a nice, ready-to-rent property, that's worth more than you've spent on it. 

SOME VALUE AT LAST!

With the summer period over we've seen a little more value creep into the market in recent weeks. This has been needed - in 2018 there's been a lot of over-valuing by Estate Agents who are desperate to win business, there are still bog-standard Alpha House flats advertised at £160k+ when everyone knows they are worth about £130k. But September has also seen a couple of decent deals that are "priced to sell" and I highlight a couple below.

£90,000, Leasehold, rent for £550
The agent isn't forthcoming with the lease details but assuming they are OK, this looks to be a well located and well presented property that will rent until the cows come home.
Full details here https://www.zoopla.co.uk/for-sale/details/48019880

£100,000, Leasehold, rent for £550
This is similar and the same comment applies about the lease. This one is tiny but well presented which is what tenants like.
Full details here https://www.zoopla.co.uk/for-sale/details/49047361

£125,000, Freehold, rent for £700
My customers have picked up 5 or 6 of this type of property in 2018 when they've become available at this sort of price. You're buying something that you know needs work but these things are easily priced up - for £12k you can get everything like new and you won't need to get involved. You're then left having spent £137k on a property that at that point is worth about £150k and will rent like clockwork. We can show you a couple of finished examples as required.
Full details here https://www.zoopla.co.uk/for-sale/details/48471574

SAVE A FEW QUID : Self Manage / Don't Manage

"Managing a property is easy - you don't need to do anything and the money just comes in by standing order". I've heard this argument on numerous occasions over the years, usually when a landlord is telling me exactly why he doesn't need my managed service, and have perfected my "we'll see" smile to a tee. It's almost inevitable there will be another conversation on the matter - it's just a questions of when.
In the vast majority of cases, any landlord that trots out this line actually intends to do NO management. As long as the rent comes in he's never going to question anything, and if it's late he'll send them a text, they'll pay within a week or so, and he'll go on thinking he's a clever boy.
I've had 2 properties back this month where the landlord has not managed. The first had been let out for some years on a room by room basis with the landlord paying all bills. She had managed to get 5 rooms let by sticking a bed in the living room and when one tenant left she encouraged the remainder to find a new housemate so they all got on. Fast forward a few years, and none of the original tenants remained, she didn't know who was living in her property, and there were no written tenancy agreements worth their salt. Then the Council got involved as neighbours were complaining about the number of people living in the property, she was served an improvement order and forced to seek possession of the property. With no tenancy agreements, this took time and required solicitors, and as soon as the tenants knew they were being evicted the rent stopped coming in. I went to see her on the day the bailiff attended, by which time there was over £5k in rent arrears, and she'd incurred over £2.5k in legal costs. The place was pretty much wrecked - she "couldn't believe they had left it like this" despite never checking on it for the 5 years previously. When it rains, it pours! Total loss around the £12k mark I'd suggest.
The second landlord used to live in the property he let out, but relocated to the other end of the UK and decided he'd self manage. Again things appeared to be running smoothly, but when the rent stopped coming in and the tenant didn't return his calls, he called me - I'm happy to help, but if you've decided to self-manage surely you should know what to do yourself? We stuck a fairly horrible notice to the front door which prompted the tenant to call the landlord immediately (the desired effect!) to advise he was moving out in 7 days as he'd previously stated (he hadn't). The landlord was having none of it and started explaining the tenants contractual obligations to him before it became apparent that in 5 years of tenancy the landlord hadn't bothered renewing the gas test. That's a difficult one to argue your way out of - you're on a sticky wicket - so the chances of negotiating anything sensible with your tenant are limited. Assuming he doesn't want to be reported for not having a gas test, the landlord is looking at the loss of a months rent plus a month empty, plus the cost of tidying up his property as the tenant by this point had lost interest in playing by the rules on any matter. When we finally got inside the landlord was shocked to find badly fitted wallpaper everywhere - he'd given the tenant permission to decorate when he moved in (no idea why) - but "I never thought he'd do this" and hadn't checked for 5 years thereafter. Rectifying it would be in the region of £3k so a total loss of about £5k on this one.

The moral of the story is of course not to cut corners and if you don't know anything about the law of landlord and tenant - why the hell would you choose to manage your own tenancy? I don't know anything about servicing my car and for that reason I pay someone else to do it. I'm not saying the cost doesn't irk me sometimes - it does - but the alternative is doing it myself which I'll get away with for so long, but when it finally goes wrong the repair bill will be massive.

LETTING TO A FRIEND

GIVE ME SOME 1 BEDS PLEASE

My team is running a couple of people short at the moment with the result that I've spent the last week out doing viewings with potential tenants for the first time in several years. 

It's been quite an eye-opener, and very interesting to see how the market has moved on in ten years since I regularly did this sort of thing - no doubt whatsoever that your average Northamptonian is increasingly struggling to afford the higher rents that have come about due to the Government restricting supply of rental property.

Particularly noticeable is the demand for smaller 1 bedroom flats. I suspect this is price driven - these things tend to rent currently for between £525 to £600 in Northampton, whereas 2 beds are £625 to £800 depending on specification. However if I'd have 20x 1 beds in the last week I reckon I could have let the lot - every decent prospective tenant I met wanted a nice 1 bed, and were trying to drive the price down on 2 beds as 1 beds weren't available. 

To emphasise the point further, at the end of the week we advertised a very nicely presented 1 bed in Kingsthorpe - within 24 hours we had 7 people booked to see it and a further 7 enquiries sat unopened.

And it's the same if you look at our letting patterns over the last 6 months or so - nice, self contained 1 bed accommodation has let instantly, either before advertising or immediately upon advertising. There isn't an issue letting 2 beds - these take 6 days on average which is still really quick, but 1 beds go like lightning. Even studios, as long as they are self-contained, let quickly. We rent out two identical buildings which used to be offices and have been converted to living accommodation. One was converted to rooms with shared facilities and the other to small, self contained studio apartments. The latter is never empty - the former is usually half-full.

I guess this post will actually be most use to developers and those converting larger properties into flats - there's no doubt in the current market if you're after instant lettability, you should be cramming in as many 1 beds as possible with a smart, clean specification that can then be let for sensible money. Larger properties will let too, but peak demand is for something nice and something private, on a budget. 

Apartment with good return, £115,000

I'm in conversations with a landlord at the moment about his 2 bed apartment which I suspect will soon be on the market for sale due to a change in his circumstances. If you're buying for monthly return you'll end up with around 6% AFTER costs here which isn't half bad in this market.
I await exact details but am expecting the following to be correct:

• 2 bed ground floor flat in small block in Ryehill, NN5.
• £115,000 and I suspect no offers will be needed.
• over 100 years on the lease and annual charges around £800 all in. 
• tenanted already at £650PCM - we manage the tenancy so that's correct!
• property has been much improved by the current owner including a new kitchen, boiler, fuse board, carpets, decoration.

Why buy this?

There are several reasons why some people will be attracted to properties like this. I've picked 5. 

1. It's very lettable - this type of property goes empty between tenancies for a few days at the most. 
2. It's in good condition - the current owner spent money on it when he bought it so 'big ticket' items like kitchens and boilers have already been attended to.
3. It's a modernish property so won't suffer from the same gremlins as older properties, such as rising damp. 
4. The freeholder is the Local Authority which means service charges tend to be more reasonable in the long run. 
5. It would be hard to find a better return for a £115k investment in the current market - anything else you can buy in that price range isn't going to deliver as much income. In fact at 6% after service charges it's about the best return you'll get in Northampton currently, without going down the riskier HMO route. 

Email me quickly if interested - will go on general sale by the end of the week. richard.baker@belvoir.co.uk.

NEW RULES, October 2018, HMOs

The year wouldn't be complete without a bit more government interference in the private rental sector. Standard form is to increase levels of red tape for Landlords that increase cost, often with an obscure caveat, such as the requirement for carbon monoxide alarms in properties that have open fires but not those that have gas boilers. 

This year is no exception and it's all about houses in multiple occupation (HMOs). The Licensing of Houses in Multiple Occupation (Prescribed Description) (England) Order 2018 says that
From 01 October 2018 all rental properties will need a HMO license when they are occupied by 5 or more adults, unless all occupiers are related or unless the property is a purpose built apartment in a block of 3 or more. 
The full legislation is here.
At present licenses cost £735 from Northampton Borough Council and may also involve physical modifications to the property such as fire doors with automatic closers, interlinked smoke alarms, emergency lighting etc - a lot (too much) is left to the discretion of the housing officer that actually processes the application.
To make matters worse, this new rule applies to properties that are already tenanted on 01 October 2018, not just tenancies that are agreed after that date. So some landlords may be in a tenancy agreement already that they are unable to get out of, and will require license to remain compliant.
What's the solution?
Not quite sure to be honest! I'm assuming that landlords won't want to get their places licensed (I certainly wouldn't myself) due firstly to cost and secondly to the fact that it will mean well presented homes get butchered to look like boarding houses. The simplest solution would seem to be to avoid situations where 5 or more adults are sharing - but that isn't always easy particularly with larger properties. Irrespective, that's the route we'll be going down to start off.
Who will suffer?
There's been mandatory licensing on properties with 3 or more habitable floors for a while so this new rule is nothing new for anyone who owns one of those. Landlords who might come unstuck are those with larger properties but set over 2 floors - so big modern boxes on suburban estates or larger period property in town centre areas. The latter in particular have a habit of ending with lots of people in - the simple size of the property means they can easily accommodate larger groups and I suspect these are the first properties the authorities will look to clamp down on as higher levels of occupancy create problems in terms of parking, refuse, etc. If we're managing one of these we'll keep our eye out for you, but landlords should note that even if their property ends up with too many people through no fault of their own (ie. you've let to 3 but 2 more have moved in without your knowledge) you'll get no sympathy from the Council - it's your house and you should know who's living there is the line they take - and fine you accordingly.  

PRICE REDUCTION : Freehold 2 bed

I'm aware a few people have contacted me in recent weeks about the 2 bed house that's for sale in Kingsthorpe at £152k - my general advice has been that considering it needs £10k spending it is a little heavy on asking price.
I've been advised this morning at that the vendor's position has changed. The asking price is now £142,500 and for someone who can genuinely proceed quickly there may even be a small downside on that price.
Despite the fact that some improvement works are required, this has gone from being a bit pricey to a being a very good deal. For about £150k all in you can end up with a refurbished 2 bed house that's actually worth north of £160k - so there's some added value for someone!
Full details of the property are here - https://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-63620038.html. Don't worry about the rental - we'll get £700PCM comfortably for it once it's all in good order. Nice tenant, etc.
Feel free to contact me richard.baker@belvoir.co.uk with any queries. 

GOOD LOCATION - 1 bed apartment with low charges

This is a good bet if you're on a budget. £109,995 (maybe a little bit less) buys you a TENANTED 1 bed apartment in the heart of Abington. Service charges are £500 per annum. The rent is £575PCM.
This is the upstairs half of a Victorian Terrace house, and situated just off the Wellingborough Road. Because it's an older property it's larger, airier, and the service charges are far less expensive. The lease is about 97 years.
The tenancy is running fine, but the tenant isn't the most houseproud of individuals, which I suspect is putting some people. It shouldn't - the tenancy is running fine that apart and a contract cleaner would have the place sparkling again in a couple of hours, if ever required.
You'll see from reading this blog that in recent months I've been bemoaning the lack of interesting looking purchases in 2018. This one's the exception - if you don't buy carefully in this market you could easily waste £150k on something that I'm not convinced is worth it - whereas this offers a good return on a road that you wouldn't usually be able to afford.

If you're interested, email me here.

If you don't want these emails, email me here.

Adding Value Through Improvements

Not sure of the reason why, but we have a lot of landlords currently who are doing larger works to their property - and we have many more lined up for later in the year - far more than we've ever had previously.
This ranges from landlords who are buying properties that are in a mess then letting us sort them out before putting tenants in, to landlords who have tired properties that have been rented for many years - by upgrading them they increase their rental value and the property value also.
One we've just finished is here - a 2 bed property in Wootton Fields. This had been rented for several years. The tenancy ended in early May at £680 per month - we've arranged a new kitchen, bathroom, boiler, decoration, flooring - and a new tenant has moved in 5 weeks later at £800PCM. It's cost the owner just under £10k but whereas his property was previously worth about £180k I'd be confident of selling it for £200k now it's all nice and sparkly. He's not selling - he'll continue to rent for some years I suspect, but by investing further in his rental property he's a) increased its value and b) ensured his rent is maximised.


My message to anyone thinking of buying a property to let is not to worry about buying a dated or dirty one, AS LONG AS IT'S REFLECTED IN THE PRICE. We can sort it out quickly and at a fixed cost and you'll then end up with something nice, new, and very rentable. 

If an estate agent charges you up front.........

It's been a while! 6 weeks in fact since my previous post which I think is a record for this blog. I've been quiet as there's been very little around that seems worth passing on - and I know from conversations with other agents that an increasing amount of properties are selling without advertising, particularly at the lower end of the market.

We're also seeing some silly advertising prices. There's a block of flats in town - all identical - they sell for £125,000 to £130,000 depending how lucky you get. One was advertised a couple of weeks ago at £180,000 (a purple one) - which is a classic example of why if you instruct an agent who takes their fee off you up front, they really don't care if they sell the damn thing or not. They've been paid - it can sit on the market for 5 years for all they care.
There is the odd gem though.
http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-54425760.html
This was advertised earlier in the week and is good value at £125k it's probably a bit of a wreck but these sell for £150k in tip top order and they don't cost anything like £25k to completely refurbish. It would rent for £700. I suspect I've been too slow with this and that it's gone already, but if you're interested you can contact the agent to find out.

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FREEHOLD - £110,000 - this is where the market starts!

If you browse the history sections of this blog over recent years you'll find that multiple landlords have bought cluster properties in the Longford Avenue area of Little Billing. They might be tiny, but they are always the least expensive freeholds you can buy, and they rent seamlessly. There are plenty of investors who try and keep purchase price as low as possible, but prefer freehold - if that's you, you're likely to end up with something like this and I'm buying an identical one myself currently!

Legislation Changes : April 2018

Landlords should be aware of a couple of legislative changes which come into effect from April 2018.

Energy Performance Certificates
It is no longer legal to agree a new tenancy, or to apply for possession through the courts, when a property has an EPC rating of F or G. Tenancies that are already running are not affected, unless court eviction is later required.
This will affect a very small minority of our landlords and we will be in touch with each to discuss as required.

Gas Safety Certificates
These are still required annually but, like an MOT on a car, you will be able to renew your certificate during the last 2 before expiry without the expiry date changing - arguably good news for landlords. We will deal with this automatically.

Don't be scared of REFURBISHMENT

The majority of investors I encounter are nervous about properties that don't look pretty and the thought of "works" makes their face go pale. For most, it's not the money that bothers them - it's the thought of hassle, dealing with tradesmen, getting their hands dirty, etc. I explain that we'll sort all that out for them, quickly and at a fixed price - so they don't need to get involved. But that requires a leap of faith on their part which I understand, so maybe I should feedback more often on this blog about refurbishment works we've undertaken.

So here's one we've just completed - a Victorian terraced property that the owner was managing herself and which came back in fairly basic order. 4 weeks later, and all for a fixed price, everything is done and we've managed to raise the rent by £150 per month due to the better condition. The owner isn't UK based so we've chosen the spec etc.

If you're buying a property to let, picking one that needs refurbishment is often a good idea - especially when the alternative is buying a fairly average one at the 'market rate'. By the time you've spent money on refurbishment you may end up having paid the 'market rate' for your property, all in. But yours is now is really good condition, with many things under guarantee, and as it's sparkling you can try for a premium rent. You're in a far better position than if you'd bought the average one, found out that it needed a few things you hadn't factored in, and ended up paying ABOVE the "market rate" by the time you'd sorted all the problems out.  

6.4% return after charges, £72,500

There's not much you can buy in Northampton for £72,500 so this studio flat should tick a few boxes for investors who are tight on budget but want a decent return. It's in Lumbertubs which isn't the most celebrated of postcodes, but is perfectly lettable to a decent tenant - it seems like there's one there already paying £450PCM which is about right.

It will be a Local Authority lease here which means charges are generally reasonable and there looks to be just under 100 years left on this property. The property itself looks like it might benefit from some nominal updating between tenancies but nothing that should break the budget or fundamentally change the figures above.

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-63937981.html Here's the flat. You need to view it through the agent that's advertising it. But I'm more than happy to answer general questions about lettability etc. richard.baker@belvoir.co.uk.

PREFER TO SHOP IN LONDON? Here's what you could have instead! http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-48671689.html

BULK PURCHASE - Potential 10% discount

I have a corporate investor who's looking to sell a number of apartments in Northampton - all in the same ALPHA HOUSE building. They'll sell individually over the next few months for about £115,000 (1 bed) and £135,000 (2 bed) but I sensed from a conversation today that there might be a deal on the table if someone takes multiple units.

All apartments are tenanted and have been managed by us since built 10 years ago. There are no problems with any of the tenancies. 1 beds will be achieving £575 and 2 beds £675.

These are nice modern apartments, well finished, building is 5 mins walk from the mainline station. We rent many in the building - they rent constantly and consistently - void periods are almost non-existent.

Leases will be around the 115 year mark and annual charges will be around £1400 (1 bed) and £1700 (2 bed).

There are 5x 1 beds which we would sell individually for £115,000
There are 5x 2 beds which we would sell individually for £135,000
If someone would take 5+ units in one go, a saving of £10,000 per unit may be achievable. 

If you're interested in these, get in touch as the number available (and the potential for a price reduction) will diminish as individual units are sold. richard.baker@belvoir.co.uk

APARTMENTS WITH STRONG RENTAL HISTORY

When I first opened my lettings agency in 2006 I was fortunate to pick up a number of apartments in a newly built block close to my office. I think at one point I sat outside the block for 4 days solid waiting for unsuspecting landlords to appear!
Fast forward 12 years and the rental experience of these owners has been really good. The apartments are largish, well built, well located and very attractive from a tenants perspective. They have gas central heating (many modern ones don't) and tenants can walk to town in 5 minutes. We calculate that the ones we've managed have been empty for around 7 weeks in 12 years which is WAY above average for apartments of that type.

I'm aware that a couple of owners intend to sell their flats soon. I await full details but would expect figures to be roughly as follows:

• 2 bed, 2 bath apartment - £145,000, rented at £700PCM, total annual charges about £1200, lease of 113 years.
• 1 bed apartment - £115,000, rented at £600PCM, total annual charges about £1000, lease of 113 years. 

These are in the SOUTHBRIDGE area of town, which runs along the side of the river near the town centre. We sell a number in the area every year - again our location helps - but the flats in this blog are in one of the better blocks due to size and specification. If you're looking at modern apartments in the price range above, these are probably a good bet in comparison to what else you could have locally. 

I await full details of what, when and how much, but am expecting to have this soon. If you're interested and want me to contact you when I'm instructed to sell, email me and let me know. richard.baker@belvoir.co.uk.

SOLD, 2 bed apartment, £127,500 FIXED PRICE

An opportunity here that's open to those who use Belvoir's managed service only (with the vendor's approval).

This is a tenanted 2 bed apartment in Far Cotton, being sold with tenant in situ. Key figures are:

• £127,500 fixed price
• 115 years on the lease
• Total annual service charges and ground rent are £920.
• Tenant paying £640PCM. 
• Return of 6% before, and 5.3% after charges

This is a block that rents really well and has done for the 10 years we've had it under management. Void periods are almost zero. The asking price of £127,500 is fixed, but reasonable. Have a look at what other 2 bed apartments you can buy for less than £130k and you'll find it's mainly ex-local authority stock, blocks in the town centre with 'problems' or blocks where the service charge is high. 

This flat suffers from none of those drawbacks - it's a modern, well presented unit with a decent lease length and a moderate service charge - if modern flats is what you're after I don't think you'll find one that's better value - by all means check Zoopla and tell me what you find!

This isn't formally advertised and in the short term isn't going to be. Enquiries to me direct - richard.baker@belvoir.co.uk 

LOW BUDGET PROPERTIES - 5.5%+ return after charges

With property prices in Northampton continuing to creep up, it's increasingly difficult to find something at the bottom end of the market that offers good rental potential. A quick flick through what's available does show a couple of these things advertised currently, so if you're trying to purchase under £100,000 these are worthy of consideration.

> http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-63937981.html
> http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-62639563.html
> http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-70105679.html

In this price band you're always going to be in ex Local Authority areas, but those highlighted above would be properties that are perfectly rentable. Whether you're in love with the are yourself doesn't really matter - we'll find someone to rent it that is. You should be mindful of the lease length which ideally should be somewhere around the 100 year mark and the service charge which, for a 1 bed would usually be less than £70 per month. Any serious deviation from either of these 2 figures would mean the value of the property needs re-assessing.
You're looking at £475 to £500 in rent for one of the above. It looks as though all need an element of improvement so let's assume that once this is done you end up around the £85,000 mark all in. If you put those figures through a calculator that's a return of 5.5% to 6.0% AFTER the service charge is deducted which isn't shabby compared to what else is available locally.
Any questions, please don't hesitate to get in touch with me. richard.baker@belvoir.co.uk

OFF TO AUCTION : Multiple Properties

The healthy housing market in Northampton over the last few years means that very little property has gone to auction - even the ones that have been very grubby have sold locally without any issue. It's hence a surprise that a number of local properties have appeared in the catalogue for Barnard Marcus' next Hammersmith Auction in early February - whether this a single owner with multiple properties who's gone bust, or whether it's a new tactic from the Sequence group (who own Barnard Marcus and a couple of local estate agents) I don't know. 

The guide prices on the properties are VERY low. I suspect they are all in pretty rubbish condition and need £15-£20k spending, but even so the guide prices remain VERY low. Here's an example - http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-63648712.html - this must be worth £150k in tip top order. The tactic here is probably to generate LOADS of interest and fill the room, getting the price bid up way over the indicated £95,000. But you never know - private purchasers may be put off by auction conditions or won't have time to sort a mortgage out. So there MAY be an opportunity to pinch a bargain if things don't go as expected in the auction room on the day.

Full auction list here: http://www.barnardmarcusauctions.co.uk/Current_Auction.html

CHEAP FLATS, Cash Only, £80k, 7% after charges.

Properties in Northampton House have appeared on this blog on multiple occasions over the years. They come with a high service charge, and can only be purchased with cash, so it's all about when they are being offered for sale at a suitably attractive price. From a rental perspective, they rent extremely well, enjoy a prime town centre location, and generally cause no issues.

There are a couple of 2 beds for sale at the moment which have recently been dropped so they DO now make good buys. Advertised at £80,000 and with a rental potential of £650PCM, they offer a return of 9.75% before charges. That is going to get hit by the service charge (not confirmed but probably about £170 a month) but will still leave you in excess of 7% with the charges factored in.
This won't appeal to everyone, but for the more commercially minded of you it's a fairly straightforward way to get a headline return of 7% on a cash investment of £80,000.
The properties are advertised on property portals with a local agent, who you would need to contact for viewings. I'm more than happy to answer further queries as required. richard.baker@belvoir.co.uk.

BUY TO LET GUIDE 2018 NOW RELEASED!

Better late than never, we're pleased to release our buy to let guide for 2018! This has been updated to reflect current market trends and provides a starting point for anyone who wants to buy an investment property in Northampton, but doesn't know where to start. If you're looking for property and want a copy, please get in touch - richard.baker@belvoir.co.uk - and I'll be happy to email one over.

WHY BUY THIS : Town Centre flat with negligable service charge, £117,500

The new year has seen some fresh impetus in the buy to let market with renewed interest from investors - clearly people have been doing their sums over the Christmas break! We're also aware from conversations other estate agents that at the lower end of the market - maybe £140k and below - a lot of stuff is selling without advertising. So whilst I say on this blog that there's not much around, what I really mean is there's not much that's making it as far as Zoopla.

One thing that will be coming on the market very soon is this flat close to the town centre and about 300m from the general hospital. It's a converted Victorian terrace, so unlike its more modern equivalents the management arrangements are more informal and the service charges are greatly reduced. We are advised there's a lease of 97 years, and service charges are only £50 per annum. I'm guessing there must be a little more than this as £50 wouldn't cover the buildings insurance - but this is certainly one of those split Victorian properties where lease charges are going to be nominal.

The property is in good order and should rent for at least £575PCM. It's very rentable due to location and condition - void periods for smaller units in this area are almost zero over the last 5 years. At an asking price of £117,500 that's around 6% return which is good considering that it will hardly be reduced at all by lease charges.

No pictures yet - you'll have to trust me that internally it's in good order!

This will be advertised, but not until early next week. Viewings will be through ourselves, so please contact richard.baker@belvoir.co.uk quickly if you're keen to have a look (or just buy it!).