Friday 31 October 2014

Nice modern apartment in Chelmsford


This apartment is looking luvly, we can't get enough of this type of property, we could rent them all day long!

This shining example is on the market for £155,000, which considering the condition and the fact it has parking isn't bad, it's always nice if you can squeeze a little off the asking pricethough, make you feel like you are getting a deal!

Bearing in mind the rental on this would be circa £695 pcm, this would look to generate a gross yield of 5.3%. Of course you would need to take into account any service charges and ground rent that would be due. 

If you would like any advise on investing in Chelmsford, give me a call!

Thursday 30 October 2014

Avon Road’s property market Outperforms Mildmay Road’s by 29%!




Last week, a couple from the Writtle area came in to discuss potentially investing in property for Buy to Let in Chelmsford. One of the most important considerations you will make before investing is the balance between annual return/yield and the annual value increase/capital growth.

Mildmay Road on the Old Moulsham side of Chelmsford, is in one of the most sought after areas in the City. The average three bedroom house currently house sells at around £297,000 and rents are roughly £1150 - £1200 per calendar month.

With this in mind, it was a surprise to find that similar sized three bedroom houses on Avon Road, off Chignall Road in Chelmsford, have outperformed those on Mildmay Road. This is because a three bedroom house on Avon Road can be bought for around £206,000 and the achievable rents can be around £1000 - £1050 per calendar month.

The yield which could be achieved from property on Avon Road is around 4.8% per year. When we compare this to the possible 3.8% on Mildmay Road, it is nearly 29% higher on Avon Road. However, we must remember that yield is not the sole consideration when investing in Buy to Let properties. The average value of a three bedroom house on Avon  Road in 2004 was £192,000, which has since risen by only 8% in the last 10 years. A three bedroom house on Mildmay Road in 2004 was approximately £219,000, meaning the value has increased by an impressive 35% in the same 10 years.

This goes to show how important weighing up capital growth is compared to annual yield is when you are looking at investing in a buy to let property

If you would like more information on investing in Chelmsford’s property market, please call me on 01245 330500 or visit our office on Duke Street

Wednesday 29 October 2014

Chelmer Village Corker!


The good deals are all coming on this week. I noticed this one this morning on Rightmove, a lovely little 1 bed house in Chelmer Village. This would be great for a buy to let property to add to your portfolio. It is on the market for £135,000, which I don't think is too unreasonable. similar properties have sold in the area for around £150,000!

This would rent in the region of £700 pcm as we have rented one recently in the area for this price, generating you a gross yield of 6.2%. 

You may have to double check if there are any maintenance fees to pay, because although it is a house, there are communal grounds which may need to be paid for to be maintained.

If you would like any advise on buying to Let, just drop me a line and I'll be happy to help.
Stephen.frost@martinco.com

Monday 27 October 2014

Awesome Deal in Springfield!


Now, this is a deal NOT to be missed out on. A cracking property, priced to sell at £125,000. It's a bit cheaper than some of the others in the area due to having a short lease. If you are not overly bothered about it though, you can get a bit of a bargain. You don't have to extend the lease straight away, you could  buy it now, keep it for a few years and extend just before you sell it. That way, it would seem very attractive to a prospective buyer having a long lease

This property would rent in the region of £695, we have just rented 2 in the area, almost identical for this price. which if you do your sums, will generate you a gross return of 6.6%. These deals don;t come up everyday!

If you would like any more info about this property, drop me a line and I'll be happy to help

Friday 24 October 2014

Another good return in Springfield


This apartment is in really good condition and would be great for a little investment property. It's only just come on to the market for £139,950 and would rent in the region of £600 pcm. These types of property are being snapped up so quickly at the moment, both when they come on for sale and for rental. 

Based on these figures, you are looking at an annual gross yield of 5.1%. 

I would get down to the gents pretty quick though if this one is tickling your fancy, as it will not be around for long

For any advice on the rental market, just send me a quick e-mail stephen.frost@martinco.com


Thursday 23 October 2014

Is the Chelmsford Property Market a Runaway Train?


Some of my landlords invest for yield, some invest for capital growth (however, it’s very difficult to get both in this market). Everyone is different; if you are a landlord in Chelmsford, who invests for capital growth as opposed to yield, it is crucial to look to build in capital growth in a property by getting a property at a discount or by finding a way to add value.
So, how can you get a discount in this property market, with Chelmsford property values rocketing and property being snapped up over night? Achieving capital growth in Chelmsford is going to be tough over the coming few years isn’t it?

Well, yes and no.

Looking at the headline figures, of the 2,436 properties available for sale today in the Chelmsford area (CM1,2 & 3), 1,248 of them are sold subject to contract, an impressive 51% which could indicate a sign of a runaway Chelmsford property market? Well, no it isn’t. Don’t get me wrong it is a lot better than it was a few years ago, but there are still good property deals to be had.

We asked Rightmove for all of the properties that had come on to the market in the last 14 days (332 to be precise), after 2 weeks, how many of those 332 had found buyers? The answer is one in eight (41 to be precise or 12%). Look at the month of September and of the 453 properties that have come on to the market in Chelmsford, 198 have a sale agreed on them (or 56%)... The property market is good but it’s not yet consistent is it?

The main thing is that landlords must take as much advice as possible. They will need to take a long and serious look at any existing properties or new ones to make sure they can achieve capital growth and that this increases in line with inflation. I have a great technique for finding properties that have been on the market for sale over three months or more. You don’t need any special software. All you need to do is ask Rightmove to list your search results (when searching), with the most recent first. The ones on the last few pages are by definition, the ones that have been on the market longest and potentially ready to do a deal... simple but effective.
We have many landlords who send me a web link of any Chelmsford properties they are interested in and I always give my honest opinion. (It might not be what you want to hear, but it will always what you need to hear!).
So why do we do that? Well, we are also a Letting Agent. Once you’ve bought the property, we would very much like to manage it for you or help with just finding you a tenant. If we give our opinion, at no cost or obligation, then we start to build a relationship, you may just start to trust us and as we will be giving you great customer service, which at the end of the day, is what landlords want from their letting agent and you might end up asking us to be your agent in the future (but of course there is no obligation to do so).

With that considered, it’s very much in our interests that you buy something that’s sensible and lettable – we don’t want you buying a dud, or something where the figures don’t stack up!

 If you want to pop in and see me, my office is on Duke Street.

Wednesday 22 October 2014

Small but perfectly formed, in Springfield


These little starter homes are really popular with tenants, because the location's great and they are very affordable, being around the £650 pcm mark.

This house is on the market for £159,995, I would try to put in a bit of a cheeky offer of about £155k though as this is what most of them are selling for in the area. If you could get it for this price, this would generate you an annual yield of 5%, which is about the going rate in the Chelmsford area at the moment. 

If you are looking to invest in the area and want some advice, just drop me an e-mail on stephen.frost@martinco.com