Badge of Honour

London homeowners go for gold as new Olympic lettings service launches

Its official, the race is now on as London homeowners seek to cash in on the estimated 500,000 visitors flooding into London this summer to witness the 2012 Olympic Games. A prime case is the former Spurs and Arsenal defender Sol Campbell's, who will be renting out his Chelsea townhouse for £75,000 a week, around four times its value throughout the Olympic Games. Like Sol, londoners have... Read more

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Case study – how to present your property: Liverpool, L3

What we like about the property… • The listing states the property is situated in the best postcode in Liverpool, and the surrounding features back that up. It’s close to the World Heritage Waterfront, the Liver Building and the Cunard Building. Architectural features like these will attract tenants. • The property has magnificent interior design. It has all the mod-cons and a rather... Read more

Mill Conversion - Balerno, Edinburgh, EH14

Case study: how to present your property – Balerno, Edinburgh, EH14

What we like about the property… • It is located in a beautiful setting on the Water of Leith in the village of Balerno. It is within commuting distance of Edinburgh, and close to Heriot-Watt University, meaning the area is a great buy-to-let investment for those that want to attract professionals and students. • It is an old mill conversion. Properties embedded with history tend to let... Read more

Woman and Idea

Essential reading for landlords! Top tips on finding and keeping great tenants

2012 looks set to be a particularly fruitful year with buy-to-let lender Paragon Group revealing that landlords are expecting tenant demand in the UK to remain high, predicting a double-digit increase in the number of people who will choose to become “professional tenants”, opting to rent rather than buy. With renting becoming ever more popular, a number of lettings agents have explained... Read more

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Case study: how to present your property – EAST HAM, E6

What we liked about the property… It has a gas central heating system. With the major gas companies dropping their prices this could save tenants a substantial amount on bills. It features modern furnishings as shown by the kitchen, lounge and master bedroom photos. This always helps properties let out fast. It is an affordable, East End London property. At £1550 per month for 4... Read more

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Case Study: how to present your student property – Cardiff, CF24

What we liked about the property… It is situated in the prime student area of Cathays, close to the main university campus and Cathays rail station. This property will always be in demand from students making it a fantastic investment. The property is well furnished unlike many student properties, ensuring it will be let quickly and will achieve top rent. The house is licensed by... Read more

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Case Study: how to present your property – Greenwich, SE18

What we liked about the property… It’s a luxury new development in an up-and-coming part of London. It has great facilities such as a gym exclusive for residents, and a concierge. It has multiple transport links with easy access to the centre of London (Train/DLR 8 minutes walk). Beautiful Thames views upstream to Canary Wharf and The City. What we liked about the... Read more

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Property viewings: nobody does it better than landlords

Showing prospective tenants around your rental property, really couldn't be easier. So, why do so many landlords leave this vital task to other people? Lettings agents and others very often don't make a very good job of viewings. Here are three good reasons from Upad on why landlords should bite the bullet and do their own property viewings: Landlords know best. You really do know your... Read more

Upad floorplan

Upad can do you a floorplan for £80

How are you enticing the best tenants into your rental property? We know the tenants you want. The ones who pay the rent again and again and don't trash the place. Pictures, blurb and even videos all help. But why haven't you got a floorplan? At Upad we know what tenants want and they love a look at the layout of the property. Upad can provide you with a professional floorplan that shows the... Read more

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Buy to Let is harder than it looks

Is it silly season already? There have been a glut of articles in the press recently talking up the opportunities of Buy to Let. There is some news here. A chunk of mortgage lending is going to BTL and lenders like Natwest have been promoting some very attractive deals. House prices in most areas are falling this year and national rent levels are growing steadily. It would be hard to imagine... Read more

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How much more can rents rise?

It's been one of the features of the past year: rents in the private residential sector have been rising pretty much all over the country. In London, some commentators say that rents have risen about 20% in the past year. The average rent paid across the UK has now topped £700 for the first time. Average monthly rents in London are now a staggering £1000. One significant cause of these... Read more

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Are landlords barking when they say “no pets”?

Every landlord wants their properties to come back to them after a tenancy has expired, with as little damage as possible. It’s not just the issue of money, it’s hassle too. It takes time to put the damage right, so it’s hardly surprising that many landlords don’t want lets with pets. But by refusing tenants with furry, scaly or feathered friends, landlords could be looking a gift horse... Read more

Internet connection

Is a tenant database ethically right?

A husband and wife duo have launched a tenant database, aimed at sorting the good from the bad especially with regards to rental arrears. The Hendersons decided to start up this database in response to the horror stories they have heard over the years. The couple themselves not been without troubles over their 15 year lettings history. The figures recently released by LSL Property Services... Read more

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The Jekyll and Hyde of tenants

The key to avoiding bad tenants is to avoid the places where the quality of tenant is unknown. If your property is advertised on the professional sites such as Rightmove, FindaProperty and Zoopla then the quality of tenant tends to be higher (professional channel, professional tenant). The free sites mean you don’t have to pay out in advertising but you may pay out at a later stage in property... Read more

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How should I reference a self-employed tenant?

It not unusual to find a tenant who is self-employed these days: in recent years there has been a rise in the number of people working for themselves or setting up their own businesses. Self-employed tenants offer a particular challenge to landlords because it’s harder to reference them but that’s no reason to dismiss them out of hand. Indeed, many self-employed people work as contractors and... Read more