4 Reasons why real Property Investors need to wake up NOW!

Throughout history it is amazing to note that many, many millionaires have made their fortunes whilst others are mumping around complaing about their misfortunes and generally whining baout the economy. The best example I can think of is Joe kennedy (the father of John F. Kennedy) who was one of the only men to come out of the Stock Market Crash of 1929 smelling of roses. These men of steel show repetitive traits - they have a plan and they stick to it. They stay calm whilst all around them people are losing their heads. We should adapt these traits to the current UK housing situation. If you are an investor then now is actually the best time to be in the game for a long time. Look at the current opportunities and fomulate a strategy around them:

1. Repossession rates are going through the roof! All over the UK people are facing rate shock as they come off their fixed rates. The increased monthly payments lead to arrears. Elsewhere, increased costs at the fuel pumps, and higher expenses at the checkout are pushing more and more pressure onto the family purse. For some, this undoubtably leads to breaking point. Repo's are now running at almost the highest rate since records began. Although unfortunate for those concerned, the flood of cheap properties onto the market makes it Christmas Day for the Professional Investor.

2. Less competiton. Two summers ago a competitively priced house coming onto the market in a readily lettable area would have created a furore. Investors would be heading down to the Estate Agents like a flock of geese. Now the same property would hardly raise an eyebrow even with a For Sale board up, an editorial in the local rag, a highlighted position on Rightmove, 500 mailings and 50 call outs. No-one is buying! Therefore, as an Investor you will have your pick of th bunch. I am not overexaggerating here. At this moment in time I can reliably reveal that there are probably 3 or 4 investors still actively buying in Corby, Northants, perhaps 1 in Wellingborough and roughly the same in Rushden. If we assume that this picture is replicated across the country then we can extrapolate and predict that there is (very roughly) about 6000 investors buying at the moment in the UK. 6000 people have their choice of thousands upon thousands upon thousands of bargains. Choice breeds bargains. It is a buyers market.

3. Estate Agents are getting desperate. Imagine if you went back in time to a year ago and called your local Estate Agent to offer £85000 on a property which was on the market for £100000. I can guarantee you that that offer would be immediately placed in "the round file" (dustbin). the agent wouldn't even bother passing the offer on to the vendor. Today it is a completely different story. The agent may be wondering where there next wage cheque is coming from and will therefore do everything they can to make the deal happen. You;d be amazed how much influence an agent has on local house prices at a micro-level. Throw in the offer and then let the agent do their stuff. If the agent poo poos you then move on and find a more pro active firm to deal with.

5. Rents are creeping up. Ok, please imagine two situations. In the first instance you are a FTB couple who would have possibly bought a house together last year but now can't due to the Credit Crunch restrictions. In the second instance you are a family who are beginning to struggle due to rate shock and are looking to get off the ladder. Now, there are two sides to every story. What goes up must come down. If there are losers like the two examples then there must consequently be winners too. The winners are landlords because all the people who are in the situations referred to above will end up in rental sector. With the reduced supply of rental houses (due to the near disappearance of BTL mortgages) properties that means that a sellers (or Landlords more correctly) market is being created. Rents will naturally rise as market condtions prevail.
Read this article and understand - now is the time to buy.