Make the most of the property downturn and low interest rates. Consider buying property to renovate and flip.
Interest rates are at an all time low and are expected to stay low for at least the next year with some experts predicting that interest rates will stay low until 2014 to give the economy sufficient time to recover and become stable.
Other the last few months house prices have begun to rise, slowly but surely, and now that the bottom of the market has been reached buyers are trying to grab the remaining bargains, and in doing so, prices are going up. There is currently still a shortage of property on the markets (depending on where you live) and following the New Year, more properties will be up for sale in the traditional busiest time of the year, the Spring.
So, if you want to either buy a cheap house to live in, or a cheap house to flip or renovate then it could be a good time to buy a property in need of work. It ll be relatively cheap to buy, interest rates on a mortgage are low and there is a returning market of buyers.
Finding the right property to renovate can be time consuming but with the various property websites and email alerts it s becoming easier. However, you still need to register with estate agents as if you are a cash buyer then some properties do not even get listed on the websites. As soon as a property comes on the market with an estate agent, the estate agent calls the cash buyers first to see if they are interested. This makes it easier for everyone all round the cash buyer gets his purchase, the seller gets his sale and the estate agents gets his commission with minimum work.
However, you may not be a cash buyer and you may also be interested in buying a property to renovate over a wide area so registering with all the estate agents may not be practical. In this case you can use websites such as renovatealerts.com which searches the internet for properties in need of work and then they email you the list of the properties they have found with links to the relevant properties. This saves you the time of scouring the websites trying to find the properties of interest to you.
Once you have found the property you want then be realistic about how much the renovation work will cost, and remember to factor in the selling costs. TV property programmes often do not include this and it can amount to £1000s especially if you re not living in the property and you need to pay VAT. If you live in the property whilst or after you have the done the work then it is simply the costs of selling a house as you would pay normally.
Also bear in mind that doing up a property is hard work. It s not glamorous or easy though it can be fun, if you re into DIY and decorating. Choosing kitchens and bathrooms can be enjoyable but you always need to bear in mind that you are doing it for a mass target audience so keep choices simple, neutral and conservative.
There will be more property booms and busts in the future but one bonus of property is that everyone needs to live somewhere. However, when you buy a property to renovate choose the location carefully making sure that there is a big enough population of people wanting to live in the area of your house. Some property is cheap because it s a declining area and property can t be sold. You must do enough research to choose the right area and people actually want to live there.
Good luck in your property renovation.
Author Resource:
Debbie Morgan writes for the UK Property Search Engine, http://www.wheresmyproperty.com and http://www.renovatealerts.com , the site that finds property to renovate.
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