Introduction
Over the last ten years investing in the property market has been one of the more successful investment models. Like any investment decision there are risks but with the right knowledge you can purchase a property that gives you real returns. By doing your research, not over stretching yourself, and viewing a property as a business are just some of the steps that will help you gradually build up a nice investment portfolio

Get wise
Doing your research before you invest in a property is vital.Regardless of the fact that you are buying for an investment or buying a home you must empower yourself before you do the financial plunge. There are loads of resources to help you these days. You can use Upmystreet.com to get updates of certain areas, the internet also has loads of estate agent sites as well as sites that are dedicated to specific towns, and local news. If you are planning to be a landlord it is worth joining a forum so you can keep updated with all the legal requirements .

Know what you are buying before you hand over the cash. You should also make yourself familiar with the location and understand the financial implications. You also need to be familiar with the law, planning restrictions, the local area rental market and what improvements will the property require. Increasing your knowledge will mean you are unlikely to make an error in judgement when purchasing a property.

How good is your maths?
Budgets, costings, calculating rent and general project management skills are all required to become a landlord. When you run a property you will have periods where no rent is coming in or an unexpected cost suddenly lands on your door step.To avoid unexpected problems you need to be able to plan in advance. You need to be financially capable and be able to do basic book keeping.Find a good accountant who can do your tax return. Watch out for accountants who claim to be experts in the property market as they are likely to be very expensive.

Hunt for new areas
One very useful idea is to look out for up and coming areas. Finding these places is not easy but if you keep your ear open to the news you can spot potential areas. Watch out for large scale investment projects such as roads, new train lines and large business projects like retail parks, etc. The Frome property market is a case in point. This town in Somerset is of interest to investors not only because it’s a pretty historic town but also because it provides relatively cheap housing for commuters to Bath.

South West England, Mendip property prices
Average house price £217,639
Detached £306,205
Semi-detached £205,643
Terrace £169,759
Flat £122,844
Annual change in house price +12.4%
Quarterly change +3.7%
Total number of sales: 265

Think business
One word of advice that you may have heard before is use your head and not your heart. When buying a property as an investment you don’t want to select a house just because it appeals to you emotionally. You need to think on the lines as to whether or not it will bring you a financial return.

Ask yourself what do people want?
Buy-to-let investors need to put themselves in the position of the tenants. Think about what you would like if you were going to rent a place. A small family would probably appreciate a separate master room with an en-suite. I would like an en-suite for my wife and I and the kid should have their own toilet. Other things to consider are the common preferences of gas ovens and gas central heating. People also like to be near hubs of industry, town centres and be near to schools and hospitals.

Invest within your means
Take you time when buying a property so as to avoid the rooky mistake of buying something too expensive and too difficult for you to manage. This leads to many people being financially over stretch and over stressed. Making mistakes is all part of the learning process so it is best to make mistakes on smaller projects first.

Breaking the chain
Being a buy-to-let investor means you are not in any property chain. What this means is that you can negotiate from a position of strength as you are effectively a first time buyer. If you are not in a chain you can negotiate harder because you are not in such a rush as the seller to release your equity. Beware however because if you annoy the seller he might be tempted to sell to someone else at a much lower price.

Getting the tenants in
Having bought a property the next step is filling it with tenants. Should you only have one or two properties you could organise the tenants yourself.
However, as your portfolio grows you might want to use an agency to do the admin legwork for you for a small fee. .

The agency can help you by finding tenants and then managing the property. To find a tenant an agency will charge you a one off fee of one month’s rent. Should you then want the agency to run your property for you, you will be charged a monthly fee. If possible ask the locals to find the most respected agency.