Property Development for Profit

Buying a house in order to sell for a profit has become quite popular thanks to the plethora of property shows on British TV. Is it really as easy as they make it seem?

If you’re lucky you can make a profit on almost any property if you are willing to sit it out and wait for the market to rise around you. However if you’re after a quicker profit you need to be a little more cunning.

Buying a property to sell for a profit is quite achievable if you’re willing to put some time and effort into it. Firstly you will need to buy a property that sits at a price far below the average for the surrounding area. This will usually be a home in need of modernisation and this can vary from property that needs major structural repair to homes that simply need bringing up to date with new décor, fixtures and fittings. You should avoid the former if you intend to make a profit as this type of property can consume a budget surprisingly quickly.

You may find making use of a home improvements company cost effective on large scale projects, especially if you intend to manage the project whilst maintaining a full time job.

To make the process a little easier I’ve split it into 4 sections which will target the key areas of renovating a property for profit.

1. Finding a property to develop

Firstly you will need to find the property, you should pick a target area in which to search for property or you can simply look in the area surrounding your own home. If you can spot an area on the up in terms of popularity you may be able to take advantage of the ensuing rise in property prices.

A good way to pick up a bargain is to purchase the property at auction. You should be careful to at least view the property from the outside if possible before bidding to ensure you are not buying a major renovation project.

The best type of property to pick up is one that is simply in need of some modernisation and it can be quite easy to find homes that have been left with their original 60’s or 70’s décor (beware the dreaded artex plaster that can seemingly adorn every surface of these properties). You will usually need to replace the bathroom and kitchen fittings and bring the décor up to a more modern standard. You may find the layout slightly unusually in properties of this age and a small amount of rearranging may be required to increase functionality.

2. Planning

Once you have found and purchased the property you will need to put into place a plan of action before you start anything. If the project is a little more large scale you should employ an architect as you will usually find this service more than pays for itself.

You should always set aside a contingency fund as you never know what unexpected costs may arise.
You should set a budget for all areas of the renovation including; building works and materials, kitchen and bathrooms, decoration, carpets and flooring (an area many forget), garden (if applicable) and mortgage and solicitors costs.

Before deciding this you should work out how much you can sell the property for once completed and factor this into your estimations. How much profit you make depends on how much work you are willing to put into the property yourself.

Remember if you can add an extra bedroom or bathroom to a property you will usually increase the value of the property quite significantly. It is best to look at similar property in the area with these additions to see how much extra they are selling for before you make a decision. Adding a loft conversion can add up to 30% but can be almost as costly in some cases.

You may wish to enlist an advanced property solutions company to achieve a high quality of workmanship in key areas such as the kitchen and bathroom. Paying a little extra in the beginning may be quite cost effective in the long run if it helps to achieve that all important sale.

3. Keeping it simple

A key element of property developing is to keep it simple, you should never apply your own taste in décor to the property and it is important to remember not to get too emotionally attached to the property. This has been the downfall of many a new property developer. Remember, you want the property to appeal to a wide market so the décor should remain neutral but smart to allow the viewer to mentally place their own stamp upon it.

Decorating a room in a colour or style that you are fond of is certainly the wrong way to go. You may like it but will everyone else? It is best to keep reminding yourself that this is not your home. Be careful not to get carried away buying gadgets that you’ve always wanted like that multi-room sound system, you might think it’s brilliant but will it really add that much onto the properties price tag? The answer is usually no. You need to think of your potential purchaser, is the property ideal for a first time buyer, would it suit a young professional person or is it a large family property? You should tailor your décor and fittings to the correct market. What use will a 3 bedroom house with only a shower be to a family with three children? You need to keep your potential buyer in mind at all times.

4. Kitchens and bathrooms

The kitchen and bathrooms are a key selling point in any property, you can have the best finish possible but if you add a poorly fitted kitchen you will lose your potential buyer as soon as they’ve walked into the room.

The kitchen is the hub of most family homes; you should seek a professional finish with practicality being of the utmost importance. You don’t have to spend a lot of money to achieve a good finish, as long as your kitchen units and work surface are modern and neutral you should be fine.

You may find it more cost effective to bring in kitchen fitters to achieve the professional look. In the long run it can work out to your advantage and they will able to help you make the best use of the space you have.

This is also true of the bathroom; this room can make or break a sale if the buyer does not like the style or fittings. You should always try to keep the bathrooms in a property modern and neutral; any way of creating a sense of more space is always a good thing. An addition such as a separate shower unit can give the room that extra usability and appeal without compromising on too much space but should only be installed if the bathroom can easily accommodate it.

As a good rule of thumb you should have at least one bathroom for every three bedrooms in a property. If you can add an on-suite or cloaks room this will increase the price you can ask for the property but should not cause any rooms to become small and impractical.

If you follow the above advice you should find the process of renovating a property a little easier. Above all remember to keep things simple and maintain a neutral and modern décor to appeal to a wider range of buyers.

buying investment property

There are a wide range of opportunities for buying investment property which should satisfy anyone looking to make an investment in property.

When buying investment property you could buy a second home or holiday cottage. This you can rent out throughout the year – albeit with some blank periods – and at the same time watch the value of the property rise over a number of years. You could also use the property yourself for a holiday when it’s not being rented out by other holidaymakers.

An increasingly popular method of buying investment property over recent years has been to invest in buy-to-let properties. These are properties in towns or cities and rented by locals who can’t afford to or don’t want to buy their own property to live in. As a buy-to-let landlord you hope to maximise your rental income by renting out the property for large chunks of time at once – a minimum of six months, and you hope for much longer. Your rental income should cover your mortgage outgoings and other expenses to bring you a net income, and, of course, the property should go up in value over a reasonable number of years.

Popularised by a number of television programmes, buying investment property that is need of renovation or redevelopment has also become a well-known way to make money in recent years. The theory here is that you buy a property in need of repair or modernisation, do it up, dress it up and sell it on for a nice profit. The dangers are that your renovation budget will be stretched so much that it will eat into your profits, and the time taken will also be “dead” time when you still have to make mortgage repayments on the property with no income from a tenant.

Another way of buying investment property is to buy off-plan.
This is where you literally buy a property from a plan, before it is finished, possibly before it’s even been started. You would look for healthy discount on the purchase price so that you can maximise your profits when you sell on. Buying investment property off-plan overseas has also become popular as the initial investment is often a lot less, though the purchase process can be more complicated.

Investing in commercial property is another way of buying investment property, where you buy a property and rent it out to local business. Such premises can include offices, shops, warehouses, factories. Commercial tenants tend to less hassle than residential tenants, and they stay longer and review rents more often.Buying investment property can also involve buying a business with the property. For example, when you buy a bed and breakfast property or even a hotel, you are buying the property and the business that goes with it. You might end up with a bigger property than in other circumstances but, of course, you will have to share it with other people.

Another way of buying investment property is to buy freeholds of large buildings divided into units. These can be cheaper than other property, but might only yield smaller ground rent from leaseholders.

When you buy at auction you are buying investment property at a cheaper price than when sold at an estate agents – or at least you hope you are. You may end up with a bargain, and the process is quicker, but the adrenalin of the auction room can tempt you to go beyond your limit. This is not for the faint of heart, and experience can teach you a lot.

Whatever way you decide to go about buying investment property, you should understand your reasons for doing it, and be clear about what you want to achieve. Indeed, with some of these options, be aware of what you’re getting into.

International Property Guide

International Property website offer you services of overseas property, whether you are seeking at property investment abroad, buying an overseas retirement property, online investment in properties in the best locations around the world. Interested people are looking for international property at great destinations that has been voted one of the best property investments in the world.

International Property market is booming worldwide Property purchase and selling property in the market has expanded its stability across many countries economies. When comes to property sale market, Dubai has a wide range of realestate investment properties, ranging from very cheap to very expensive, based on the nature of the location. International property guide suggests that a combination of inflation, widespread subsidies of housing markets, political troubles, and overbuilding, have made the outcome in Dubai is 'boom' Property sale markets. Dubai's present apparent property boom is a 'construction boom - not an investment property, it says, warning property investors against following the tempting siren song of the real estate professionals.

Realestate international property investors want to buy property as an asset but consider it as a realestate investment and which will actually results in excellent returns on their investment property.

The growth in international property prices are good, not only does the country such as Dubai have a unexpected growth, it is rapidly promoting its tourist industry and this means a huge influx on people wanting high quality accommodation to rent and looking for holiday homes.

Property purchaser can actually think seriously about the investment property in condo hotels, realestate international property and property overseas. International Property provides the opportunity to enjoy buying realestate appreciation while the investment property is being built as well as after the construction is completed.

Why investing in international property?

-Property overseas is available in low initial prices.

-There is some contract based provision attach to buy property, sell property, buy realestate, sell realestate, property sale or realestate sale which binds the investor to hold the property for some duration.

-Property overseas can be sold by the time realestate sale or realestate buy market with much higher returns.