PropertyQuoteDirect – Landlords & Buy to Let Insurance Blog

Moving House?

January 27th, 2012

It’s a daunting task isn’t it? But with the economy (hopefully) beginning to pick up, we can expect more and more people to move home in coming months and years. Furthermore, in London, property sales have remained high as have property prices. So we do indeed know that people are still moving to new homes, despite economic doom and gloom.

In addition, it has been reported that in the first ten days of 2012 there were over 44 million property related internet searches, which is an encouraging 30% more than the same time last year. So it does indeed seem that more people are thinking about a new home.

Packing

The most daunting thing about moving house is, for me, the packing! I hate packing, as I’m sure a number of people reading this very blog do too. It’s just so tedious isn’t it? Now, when I say I hate packing, the only packing I’ve ever really done is when going on holiday, or moving into and out of fully furnished rented accommodation, and yes that is difficult and tedious enough! So I cannot even imagine how stressful packing up an entire house can be. Nevertheless, it’s just one of those things that we all need to get on with at some point!

However, moving can be a time to have a good clear out. Get rid of anything you know you will never need again – you may find that you can donate a large number of items to local charity shops, so before throwing things away maybe run them down to local charities to see if they are interested.

Removals

Furthermore, my advice is to get yourself a good, professional removal company in order to help you transport everything. This can only be done once everything is packed, but it could be easier to pack in stages, and thus transport your belongings in stages. It would be a wise idea to hire a removal company around two weeks before you are due to move as this will allow you enough to time to find one that is free on the date you need them! In order to try to save some money it will be worth hunting around for a good deal, or for any sort of discount they may be offering.

It will also be good to inform the removal company of the amount of large items you need to move, such as furniture for example.

Admin and Legalities

In addition, it will be important to make sure you carry out all the paper work and admin that needs to be done when moving house. You will need to arrange property insurance at your new home; you may find that you can simply transfer your existing policy to your new house without much of a change in the price. You will also need to inform just about everyone you know of your new address, along with banks and utilities companies. Basically any company you have any connection with needs to know your new address, just in case they send you anything important. It will also be worth leaving a forwarding addressing for the new occupants of your previous house, just in case anyone still sends post to the old address.

This is by no means an exhaustive list of things that need to be done when moving house, but as long as you are organised then everything should run smoothly!

Tags: Moving House, Property insurance, Removal Company, Removals
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Do It Yourself

January 25th, 2012

Today we’re thinking about DIY. It’s something you either love or hate and more often than not it can be an argument maker and a key area of dispute between couples. We’ve all been there, whether it’s witnessing your parents arguing about how to fit a toilet seat, or whether you’re the one arguing with your partner about the best way to paint a wall…it’s a common occurrence and one we can all relate to.

New Flat

Having moved into a new flat I didn’t expect to be doing any DIY – for a start it’s rented and I didn’t think the landlord would be happy with me making changes to her beautiful property. And, don’t get me wrong, it is a very beautiful property and I wouldn’t change a thing, however, upon moving in, the first thing I noticed was that the bedroom and bathroom doors didn’t actually close. Now that to me is a bit of problem, especially if someone requires privacy in the bathroom!

What to do?

So, I thought I better contact the landlord in order to inform them and to seek advice and guidance about steps to take as I didn’t want to set about breaching any contract I had just signed, or any landlord insurance policy the landlord had taken out, by hacking away at the doors to make them fit.

The landlord, however, was rather relaxed about the whole thing and advised me to have a go at fixing them myself, providing I knew what I was doing. I settled any doubts they had by telling them I have an A-Level in Design & Technology (without sounding too Del-Boy and Rodney-esque) and that I would be able to sort the doors out without a problem. The landlord was so relaxed about it because they intended to get some new doors in the property at some point in the near future anyway.

Having a go

So I went out, bought the right tools, and got to work. It was NOT as simple as I first thought it might be. Basically I wanted to plane the sides of the doors whilst they were still attached to the hinges. Whilst it was indeed do-able, it was a bit of a hassle and I would advise anyone else to take the doors off the hinges first.

That’s not rocket science but I thought, why bother taking them off the hinges when it would only be a thirty second job? Well, it wasn’t a thirty second job as I soon found out. It took a while and after I had planed the doors I decided to smooth them down with sandpaper. It was easy enough, but it still didn’t stop an argument between me and my girlfriend. She was of course, as usual, correct when she advised me to take the doors off the hinges, but I just didn’t listen did I?!

This is a bit of mild example of a DIY tiff but an example nonetheless, and I’m sure over coming years there will be many more arguments as a result of a bit of pesky DIY.

Do you have any amusing examples of DIY you’ve carried out?

Tags: DIY, Do It Yourself, landlord contract, Landlord Insurance
Posted in Landlord Insurance | 1 Comment »

Top Property Locations

January 23rd, 2012

I came across an interesting article today that discussed the best locations to invest in London in 2012, and the list was a rather surprising one.

Property prices in London have been rising and they are expected to keep increasing over the year, especially with the Olympics coming to town in the summer which, as we know, will result in rents rocketing, but prices to buy in London will also be effected, which could in turn effect property insurance quotes too. The more expensive a property, the more expensive the insurance is likely to be.

So, what are the top three areas that will be the winners over the course of the year and subsequent years to come?

Kentish Town

First on the list was Kentish Town and Peter Malcomess of Chesterton Humberts has been quoted saying: “With the opening of the new French school in Kentish Town last September, enquiries on family homes directly related to the school currently make up around 15% of all our enquiries. These requests are mainly from French families living in London looking for large apartments or family houses in the area.” Kentish Town is now beginning to compete, in terms of property prices, with its neighbour Camden.

Would you look to invest in Kentish Town if you’re a property investor?

Battersea

Second on the list is Battersea, home to the much loved dog rescue facility. Battersea was listed as the second best place to invest in 2012 due to the fact that an extension to the Northern Line will put Battersea on the Tube Map once and for all. A local estate agent at Douglas & Gordon, Mark Hutton, has been upbeat about the new plans as people are already looking to invest, as he stated: “People are already buying into the area with these plans in mind.”

Furthermore, David Barnett, a property developer has been stating that investors will increasingly become attracted to the large expanse of land, the accessibility and the fact that the land is relatively cheap. The American Embassy is also to be built in coming years which will in turn help with the regeneration of the area.

Croydon

Third on the list was Croydon. Now this to me was quite a surprise at first, especially if you think back to the riots in August last year, however, we must not forget that the South London borough is already home to some very wealthy property owners and some very expensive homes, and it has great links to central London.

Over coming years property in Croydon is also expected to become increasingly popular, and therefore prices are set to rise. There are also plans for a Westfield Shopping Centre to open there which will of course pull in visitors from all over the country! Croydon could indeed become a property hotspot in future months and years.

Out of these three locations, hypothetically, where would you most likely invest your money?

Tags: London Property, London Property Market, Property Insurance Quotes, Top Locations
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Facebook Move into Property

January 20th, 2012

Some blog worthy news today comes fresh from Facebook, and that is the news that a property application has been launched on the social network. It is intended for selling, buying and renting property, and is simply called Property Place.

Having launched today the app has over 400,000 properties listed. Facebook obviously built up an extensive database of properties across the different markets before putting the app live.

Cost Saving

Property Place will allow users to advertise property that is for rent or for sale and is a means by which to cut out expensive estate and letting agent fees. It seems Facebook’s people in charge are aiming to create a platform whereby the average internet user can do almost everything they want via Facebook.

It must be said that this new venture from Facebook demonstrates some very clever, innovative thinking. They’ve found one of the most stressful tasks that people are faced with, moving home, and created an app on their site in order to simplify things and save property hunters time and stress.

Through Facebook viewings can be arranged either by the user themselves, or via a Property Place partner, Emoov, the online estate agency, as they can handle the logistics and management for a fee of £295. This is still at a fraction of the cost of a high street agent and so will save users thousands. With such big savings, more people may be encouraged to invest in more comprehensive property insurance, rather than just paying for the bare minimum.

Big Fans Already

Just one of the many people already familiar with the app is Jack Eddowes, from Leeds. He uses Property Place to let out his Sheffield student properties, and he has been commenting: “Typically students spend more time on Facebook than any other website so it makes sense to market my properties with Property Place on Facebook. It’s far more convenient for me and prospective tenants to communicate.”

The founder of Property Place has confidently gone as far as stating: “It’s the future of buying and renting property!” Is it now a case of move over Rightmove and Zoopla, Facebook is now making a very big splash in your relatively small pool? Or will people stick to using the more established online property portals, or alternatively, a good old fashioned estate agent and/or letting agent?

Tags: Estate Agent, Facebook app, letting agents, Property insurance, Property Place
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Development for Social Housing Fraud

January 18th, 2012

Last week we blogged about the proposal that the Housing Minister, Grant Shapps, was to make it illegal for landlords to sublet their homes with punishments such as two years imprisonment and a hefty fine included in the plans. Well this week, there has been a further development on the story, as it seems that it’s not just us here at PropertyQuoteDirect that agree with the proposed plans!

Backing for Plans

Paul Shamplina, of Landlord Action, has said that he is fully behind the plans as he is often called in by landlords in order to evict problem tenants, only to discover that the actual problem is the landlords, rather than the tenants. Furthermore, it is also likely that such landlords would be operating without a landlord insurance quote.

Mr Shamplina has been quoted saying: “This is an extremely positive step in combating long-term abuse of the social housing system. There have been a growing number of tenants acting as landlords by sub-letting their council properties for their own financial gain, and this is to the detriment of thousands of other vulnerable people.”

Paul Shamplina then went on to add: “In the past, we have experienced ‘landlords’ seeking our assistance to evict their tenant, only to find out that the property is not in fact theirs and the ‘tenant’ is not actually aware the property is being illegally sub-let. Hopefully, imprisonment of up to two years as well as a hefty fine will act as a deterrent.”

Further Powers

In addition to these measures, it has also been revealed that local councils will be given more powers to further investigate any particular incidents where such fraudulent behaviour is suspected through an increased amount of access to data from banks and utility companies.

So far it has been the case that councils can request data but organisations can refuse to provide it. However, if these new measures were indeed put in place, then organisations would have to comply with council requests.

If there are any further developments on these proposed plans, we will deliver them here, on this very blog!

Tags: Grant Shapps, Landlord Insurance Quote, social housing, Social Housing Abuse
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Olympic Tenants

January 16th, 2012

The Olympic Games are quickly approaching and it will be the summer before we know it, and so, although it may still seem like a while away now, many businesses and firms are preparing for the sheer influx of tourists to London’s streets, and if you are indeed a landlord, or a potential Olympic landlord, then you will no doubt be thinking ahead to the summer’s events too.

Location

Many landlords with properties in central areas of London will already have snapped up tenants for the few weeks that the Olympic Games are in town, however, the majority, as of yet, probably won’t have.

So, now could be the perfect time to begin trying to pull in tenants. It may be worth having a look at the Olympic website if you are wondering whether you are near the locations where events will be talking place. It’s important to remember that Olympic events will not just take place in East London, as there will be some taking place in Weymouth for example, along with other locations dotted around the UK. So it may well be worth looking to see if you are near any particular events which may pull in crowds, and with it, tenants.

Student Landlords

If you are a student landlord in London, then you may find yourself in luck, as it is likely that your property will be vacant during the summer which will leave it available for Olympic tenants.

If this is the case then it will be important to ensure your landlord insurance policy is valid at a time when you wouldn’t normally have tenants in your property.

Pricing

Furthermore, if your property is centrally located, then you will probably be able to charge whatever price you like and it is no secret that accommodation during the Olympics is quite a bit more expensive than normal.

However, if you own property elsewhere, then you will need to be careful with your pricing strategy; accessibility is a key factor, and you would not want to overprice a property that is just too far to justify the cost. Tenants will not want to have to travel for an hour to get to a particular venue or event whilst paying central London prices.

With the Olympics nearly upon us, many landlords will be excited about the prospects that could lie ahead as they will try to maximise revenue and profit.

Tags: Landlord Insurance, London 2012, Olympic Games, Olympic Tenants
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Advice Given for Property Investment

January 13th, 2012

It has been reported in the property news this week that Assetz, a property investment advice firm, has warned that this year is not one for taking punts when investing in certain areas. They have warned that the difficult state of the Eurozone could negatively hit prices here in the UK, even though buy-to-let is likely to continue growing this year.

Popular Areas and Bargains

Popular residential areas where employment is at a good level and where there is a strong infrastructure are of course going to lead to strong tenant demand, and it is inevitable that demand is likely to continue outstripping supply in such areas.

However, that doesn’t mean a bargain that will ultimately make you money cannot be found in areas of high unemployment. If you research hard enough you may find that certain areas of the country may have a high unemployment level, but such areas may also have a university nearby and therefore a strong student population. And of course, students need accommodation!

Student Accommodation

Letting to students, in any part of the country, could indeed prove a winning situation for any property investor. Letting to students can be very tricky business however. Student properties often suffer from damages. Many students like to have parties involving alcohol which can in turn lead to damages being sustained. A good way to protect yourself is, of course, with landlord insurance. If accidental damage is incurred, a decent insurance policy will protect you against the cost of repairs.

Furthermore, students often live off their student loan which comes in once a term on a specific date. This all means that cash and rent payments can sometimes be a bit of an issue for students so it will be worth keeping in mind that rent payments may be a little late sometimes.

Student Rates

Also, whilst rent is normally charged on a monthly rate, when letting to students it may be an idea to think about charging rent every quarter, and perhaps it will be a good idea to advertise the level of rent as a weekly amount; for example, £80 a week including bills that is then paid quarterly. This means students can pay you once their loan is in every quarter, as chasing rent every month will become a bit of a hassle for both you, and the student.

There are of course, a lot of positives about student letting, such as, a continuous supply of students and therefore a continuous supply of tenants, provided your property remains attractive and affordable.

Student property can be a pleasure to invest in as it can be very profitable. Students will also normally be relatively easy to work with and provided you have a good working relationship with your tenants, it should be a stress free process.

Tags: Landlord Insurance, Property Maintenance, Student Accommodation, Student Letting, Students
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Social Housing Abuse to be made a Criminal Offence

January 11th, 2012

A big topic in the news today is the story that tenants who have been subletting their social housing could face up to two years in prison. On the face of it that may seem like quite a harsh penalty, but at the end of the day, that is a form of fraud and it is certainly an abuse of the system. A system that has enabled them to live at a low cost.

Fraud Must be Stopped

Grant Shapps has stated that he wants to make social housing fraud a criminal offence as this would be the only way to deter tenants from cheating the system. He has also spoken about his desire to introduce other proposals in an attempt to make it easier to find those that are indeed subletting their homes in order to then tackle the issue and free up homes for the people that need it most.

It is believed that between 50,000 and 160,000 social homes in England are currently unlawfully occupied. There is therefore quite a lot of scope in that figure, which suggests that this is a very inaccurate prediction simply because the fraudsters have been able to cover up the fact that they are scamming the government by subletting their social houses. The cowboy landlords are also extremely unlikely to bother with any landlord insurance quotes. Furthermore, it is also predicted that these unlawfully occupied homes are costing around £900 million each year.

What We’ve Been Waiting For

Now, what I do find to be quite ridiculous is that such a type of fraud is not even a criminal offence at the moment. Hence why Shapps is so keen on making it a criminal offence! The harshest punishment currently being handed out to those who are cheating the system is to simply hand back the keys for the properties they do not live in. My question is, why has it taken so long, and cost so much money, before a plan has been put in place to tackle such offences?

Well, nevertheless, plans that have been announced today will see social housing tenancy abuse punished by a maximum penalty of two years in prison, and a £50,000 fine if the case goes to Crown Court.

Tags: Landlord Insurance, Landlord Insurance Quote, social housing, Social Housing Abuse, Social Housing Tenancy Abuse
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Who Wants a Games Room?

January 9th, 2012

Last week we blogged about our perfect, dream house, and today it has been reported, in a rather contradictory, ironic fashion, that apparently landlords are doing away with dining rooms in order to try to make their property more attractive to potential tenants. Well, in all honesty, I’d quite like a dining room!

Survey Carried Out

Lloyds TSB carried out a survey to determine whether property owners were considering a more open plan design, and whether a dining room was really necessary. The survey revealed that over a fifth of homeowners have already set about knocking down walls over the last ten years, and it is expected that around a similar number will do the same over the next ten years.

The study by Lloyds TSB also revealed that there are now several new rooms that are becoming increasingly attractive to potential tenants. For example, the utility room is thought of as a necessary addition, whilst the en-suite and the games room are added bonuses. Every young man would surely love their own games room, wouldn’t they? I know I would! I’d deck it out with a large flat screen TV, some computer consoles, a pool table, a darts board and a foosball table…maybe I’m just a big kid though?!

Update Your Insurance!

Now of course, for a property owner, such changes will need to be included within a property insurance quote as they may well affect the value of the property. So, be sure to update your policy! It will also be important, if you are a landlord, to advertise such fantastic additions such as a games room and an en-suite. They could be a real selling point for prospective tenants!

Simon Hamilton, International Director at the British Institute of Interior Design, has been commenting about such changes: “Property particulars are starting to look very different. Houses, especially older properties, were designed with people’s lives in mind, with set rooms for set activities, but as times change so does what we want from our homes.” I agree, however, surely a games room is a set room for set activities…

If I was a prospective tenant, a games room or an en-suite could definitely win me over, provided the price was right of course. What would work for you?

Tags: Attracting Tenants, Property insurance, Property Insurance Quote, Property Value
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Dreaming up a Perfect Property

January 6th, 2012

Today at PropertyQuoteDirect we are talking dream property! The news has recently been filled with property prices going up, down and sideways, but mostly down, and so today, in order to help stem the January blues, and to try to find some respite from the poor state of the economy, we have been thinking about some of the best property locations, and what would make the perfect dream property.

Location Matters!

Now in terms of location here in the UK, we decided the number one spot is somewhere in the countryside, away from the hustle and bustle of London, but not too far from it! Our perfect pad would be somewhere rural but with great transport links as well. After all you wouldn’t want to be unable to get into the centre of town, or be unable to quickly pop down the shops would you?

It would also be important for the property to be located near schools and in areas of low to nonexistent crime. This is something that will inevitably help when acquiring property insurance! In short, the outskirts of a beautiful little village with a friendly atmosphere, that wasn’t too far from the UK capital, would be a perfect location.

Now the Property

So what about the property itself? Well, this is a tricky one. Of course a lot of people would go straight for the large mansion, whereas others would prefer a smaller, prettier cottage for example. My own personal preference would be somewhere in the middle. Not too big, but big enough to house an average family.

The property would also be surrounded by beautiful scenery and greenery. Ivy would cover part of the front of the house and the driveway would be scattered with gravel. The property would also have its own private gates, and a private garage.

Upon entering the property you would be greeted with real wooden finishes and some grand art work on the walls. The main reception area would also be one of the top attractions within the house – a place to mingle perhaps?

The garden would be large enough for a decent number of people to get involved with a game of football and there would also be a couple of swings hanging in the corner.

At this point it is inevitable that people will be disagreeing with me, so we ask the question: what would your perfect property look like?

Why don’t you too start dreaming up your ideal home? It’s a lot of fun, and a good distraction from the harsh reality of our current economy. Feel free to let us know what you come up with!

Tags: Dream property, Prime Property, Property insurance, Property market
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