Making the Most of Buy to Let Property Investment

A recent survey into the fall of house prices by the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) has shown an increase in the lettings market.

It shows that the letting market had increased significantly in the first quarter of 2008, as house values are falling the rental values are increasing. This means that the draw of renting a property is much more appealing than leaving it on the market for a possible long period of time.

To capitalise on this market change buy to let property investment is very appealing for people wanting to build a property portfolio. Strong rental demands look set to increase meaning returns will remain high for landlords.

If you are looking at buying property investment, you can use the expertise of Property Investment Portfolio to help with the maintenance, development and conversion of properties. We can offer our investors anything from a single, run down property, ideal for property development for rental or profit on resale, to the purchase of an existing tenanted rental property portfolio with a full managed service.

BUSINESS WINDOW OF OPPORTUNITY AS PIP CLOSES FIRST COMMERCIAL PROPERTY DEAL IN MANSFIELD

Mansfield is the latest town climbing the commercial property ladder according to property experts at Property Investment Portfolio (PIP). The Nottingham firm has just acquired the site of Paramount Windows in Mansfield to convert into seven industrial units, creating a new business park in the town centre.

PIP has purchased the 6038 sq ft site at Rock Valley with funding supplied by Yorkshire Bank’s Nottingham Financial Solutions Centre, and the company plans to create industrial units which will be ideal for start up businesses or small industrial firms. The conversion of the site is expected to take three months with the units available for occupation in the summer.

The individual units will begin at 525 sq ft and will be offered for both sale and let to potential investors. PIP is expecting strong demand from investors looking for freeholds, as Mansfield town centre continues to expand, drawing new businesses to the area. These new units are close to the motorways and A-roads, come with parking facilities and importantly are affordable, with the mortgage payments in some cases being on par with rents.

Arv Soar, director at PIP explains: “We wanted to create a mini business park that was just a stone’s throw from the town centre and was affordable for new businesses. These will be the closest industrial units to the town centre and Mansfield remains one of the cheaper areas of the East Midlands for both residential and commercial property. I anticipate high demand for them as the local economy continues to grow.

“I needed prompt funding for this deal and worked together with Yorkshire Bank senior partner Stan Harrison to achieve this. Stan’s appetite for this deal and our combined market knowledge was crucial in this instance, as I had a lot of competition when buying this site and might have lost out if PIP’s finances weren’t in place as quickly as they were.”

For the past two years, PIP has specialised in the residential property markets in the Midlands and the North of England. This new project in Mansfield is the first commercial property venture for PIP, but as the company looks to expand its geographical reach, commercial property is now at the forefront of its plans.

PIP has recently opened an office in Hull to support the Nottingham HQ and the company is looking to expand into North America in the coming months. Managing director, Arv Soar is also a non-executive director of Grosvenor Consortium, which is planning a multi million pound commercial project.

For more information on the Rock Valley business units, contact Property Investment Portfolio on 0115 9289 333 or visit www.propertyinvestmentportfolio.com.

CITY MAKES A HULL OF AN IMPRESSION ON PROPERTY DEVELOPER

Entrepreneur Arv Soar went to Hull to develop property – but he did not expect to fall in love with the city.

But that’s exactly what’s happened and now Arv, who runs Property Investment Portfolio in Nottingham, is opening an office in Hull, his first office outside of his home city.

Arv commented: “With the current Government investment and positive migration into Hull, we see the city as a growth area. We had such fantastic reports from people wanting to invest in Hull and in the rental market, that we decided to open a base in the city.

“On a personal level, I want to complete the regeneration of streets like Wellsted – areas where others have tried, but failed, and given up. It is my goal to help the city of Hull.”

The new Property Investment Portfolio office is at 541A Anlaby Road, and will be headed up by Malcolm Fox. Hull native Malcolm has spent his career to date in the property industry.

Malcolm commented: “As a qualified mortgage and insurance sales manager, with a background in strategic business planning, I will be helping to drive Property Investment Portfolio forward in Hull.

“It’s a modern city that is developing quite a reputation as a place in which to do business and in which to live. I am proud to be a part of making that happen.”

One major project that Property Investment Portfolio, which has 40 sub-contractors in the Hull area, is conducting is the multi-million-pound refurbishment of nine Victorian-era properties near the town centre into 30 high-quality apartments.

When completed, it is intended that the apartments will be sold to investors and to first-time buyers.

Property Investment Portfolio owns hundreds of derelict properties in the town centre of Hull, with the workforce of sub-contractors working flat out to bring them back into use, with damp-proofing and the installation of gas and central heating taking place before the properties are painted and carpeted.

Added Arv: “These terraced homes provide affordable housing for all sections of society and that is what it is all about - making Hull a thriving community once again.”

The new office will open in March and will also sell and manage external properties. For more information about this and Property Investment Portfolio, please log on to www.propertyinvestmentportfolio.com or call the PIP HQ on 0115 928 9333.