Introduction - not new to property but new to Property Forum

[LauraHall]

Hi everyone,
I'm surprised I have not found this site before! Better late than never eh!

I've been investing in Hampshire & Test Valley sor several years. I mostly rent to tenants in receipt of housing benefit on direct payment to landlord basis. I combine this with a multilet strategy to keep my yields very healthy.
I continue to build my rental portfolio and left employment in 2014 to 'do property' full time and I'm enjoying it a lot!
I co-present some property workshops (aimed at newer investors) and I offer my due diligence services to other investors (time poor or new to investing, whoever needs some assistance really!)

I'm keen to keep up to date with the impacts of the universal credit roll out accross the UK, this might affect my strategy! I'm involved with a landlord working group at Test Valley Borough Council to help them with landlord relationships and to keep my finger on the pulse!

Along with many other investors, I'm following the 'clause 24 taxation' progress. I will likely form a Ltd company but I'm not going to do this until full details are released from government. I'm keen to hear what other investors who have historical portfolios are doing.

I'll try and assist members of this forum where I can and I hope to learn lots too. I love learning .... which is just as well really, as being a property investor right now needs continual change and development!

In my freetime I'm a keen cupcake baker and strategy board game geek! and I support a charity very dear to my heart "The Retinal Childrens Fund". A few times a year I co-host charity property workshops - search, research and due diligence techniques. For a small donation of £50 we walk newer investors through our serach and due diligence processes with 100% of the donations going to this charity. Its been set up by a very talented consultant surgeon to buy a retcam machine for a local NHS special care baby unit. It will be used to screen for Retinopathy of Prematurity, an eye disease affecting premature babies. I support this charity as much as I can as I'm dealing with complex adult complications of this childhood eye disease and hopefully this retcam can help todays preemie babies avoid these adult complications by getting treatment as babies!

Well, enough about me, I'm going to explore this site further to see where my experience best sits and do some learning in other areas!
Thanks for reading!
Laura

 

[nmb]

Hi Laura,

First of all, welcome to the forum and from your initial introduction it looks as though you have much to offer!

I am very interested in your strategy of renting the majority of your properties to those on housing benefit as historically some investors have shied away from this market because of low yields. Could you give us an example of the kind of rental yields available in this particular market as I know many of us would find that very helpful.

 

[Nicholas Wallwork]

Hi @LauraHall and a warm welcome to our forum community! Great introduction!

I live in Andover, Hampshire where exactly do you operate? I have not invested here (yet) other than my family home, most of my portfolio is spread out over the rest of the SE.

I'm also keen to see what yields your getting and how you find the lha market and to hear about some of the challenges you face. I rent to professionals only so keen to hear your side of things.

The charity work sounds great and happy to support any charity advertising events posts on here so please get in contact when the next one is available and we'll post something up for you.

Looking forward to chatting and learning more together!

 

[LauraHall]

Hi Laura,

First of all, welcome to the forum and from your initial introduction it looks as though you have much to offer!

I am very interested in your strategy of renting the majority of your properties to those on housing benefit as historically some investors have shied away from this market because of low yields. Could you give us an example of the kind of rental yields available in this particular market as I know many of us would find that very helpful.

Thank you for the warm welcome, I hope you'll be ok if I combine your reply with Nicholas' as well ... as you've both asked the same question. Thanks!

 

[LauraHall]

Hi @LauraHall and a warm welcome to our forum community! Great introduction!

I live in Andover, Hampshire where exactly do you operate? I have not invested here (yet) other than my family home, most of my portfolio is spread out over the rest of the SE.

I'm also keen to see what yields your getting and how you find the lha market and to hear about some of the challenges you face. I rent to professionals only so keen to hear your side of things.

The charity work sounds great and happy to support any charity advertising events posts on here so please get in contact when the next one is available and we'll post something up for you.

Looking forward to chatting and learning more together!

Hi Nicholas,
Awesome! a fellow Andover dweller! (Well, I live in Basingstoke, but close )

Under the housing benefit system (hence why I'm following UC closely) I rent to 2 or 3 indivuduals (or "claiming units") in the same property. A hybrid LHA strategy with multi occupancy.

I claim £580.75 for each tenant, so of course depending on the property price and the number of tenants that I can suitably agree with the council (and meet the criteria in the DWP manual) I can achieve 8.5% to 12% yields.

It is quite hands on, my tenants often don't come with beds, sofas etc... so I almost always have to find 'preloved' things to help them get started. I help each one at the council offices with the 46 page form! Its quite a high-hassle strategy but my yields are excellent and there's a certain amount of good feeling about helping people.

Thanks so much for with allowing our charity events to be posted. We are just starting to put together things for the next one, so I'll let you know!

Many thanks for the warm welcome!
Laura

 

[nmb]

Hi Laura

That all sounds very interesting and it seems that your hands-on approach is paying significant dividends. Do you think your portfolio income will be impacted by the ongoing austerity measures introduced by the UK government? There is even talk of further austerity amid signs that the worldwide economy is struggling.

 

[LauraHall]

Hi, I'm very mindful of the austerity measures and watching caefully!
As most of my tenants are claiming Local Housing Allowance and this is set at 30% percentile of market rents in the private sector for each BRMA, I don't think it will go down. Private rents are rumoured to increase due to the chancellors tax hike so I think this part will be ok for me personally.

However, the stance taken to sanction benefits more frequently will potentially be an issue!
Obviously the government want to reduce their benefit bill so I stay watchful but at present I'm not being affected.

I have a plan B for my portfolio in case I need to change my tenant profile.

 

[Nicholas Wallwork]

Hi Nicholas,
Awesome! a fellow Andover dweller! (Well, I live in Basingstoke, but close )

Under the housing benefit system (hence why I'm following UC closely) I rent to 2 or 3 indivuduals (or "claiming units") in the same property. A hybrid LHA strategy with multi occupancy.

I claim £580.75 for each tenant, so of course depending on the property price and the number of tenants that I can suitably agree with the council (and meet the criteria in the DWP manual) I can achieve 8.5% to 12% yields.

It is quite hands on, my tenants often don't come with beds, sofas etc... so I almost always have to find 'preloved' things to help them get started. I help each one at the council offices with the 46 page form! Its quite a high-hassle strategy but my yields are excellent and there's a certain amount of good feeling about helping people.

Thanks so much for with allowing our charity events to be posted. We are just starting to put together things for the next one, so I'll let you know!

Many thanks for the warm welcome!
Laura

Small world! I used to live in Basingstoke also... it's a great place to invest and prices doing well too with all the transport links e.t.c.

Thanks for the info on your strategy, it's interesting to see how other people run their property businesses it's inspirational for other readers so thank you for posting and contributing to the forum! I hope to see you become a regular community member and look forward to supporting your charity posts in the future

 

[Veronica]

Small world! I used to live in Basingstoke also... it's a great place to invest and prices doing well too with all the transport links e.t.c.

Thanks for the info on your strategy, it's interesting to see how other people run their property businesses it's inspirational for other readers so thank you for posting and contributing to the forum! I hope to see you become a regular community member and look forward to supporting your charity posts in the future

I used to live in a village called Barton Stacey very close to Andover

 

[nmb]

Hi @LauraHall

I would be interested to hear your plan B if possible?