The Property Podcast

We’ve got an interesting success story for you this week This success story is a little different to most success stories we share on a weekly basis.  You’ve heard of the term ‘buy two get the third one free’, but have you ever heard it in the property market before?  Chances are, probably not.  But one lady’s success story benefits from this kind of deal... Here’s what to expect on this week’s property podcast episode Today Rob & Rob are talking to Elly and she’s got a unique success story that we think you’ll be pretty impressed by. Elly’s full story will be appearing in the next issue of the Property Hub Magazine so if today’s episode grabs your attention, make sure you’re subscribed to receive the next issue.  She lives in West Sussex and a few years ago decided that she was going to invest in property 350 miles away in the North East. Going into 2020 she had one property under her belt that she’d done up and rented out and was planning on using the buy, refurbish, refinance strategy.  But that’s not quite what happened.  Whilst speaking to her broker about refinancing the first property, she was presented with a deal.  Three two-bedroom terraced properties in County Durham on a buy two get one free offer.  The typical tenant in this area tends to be Universal Credit, which she wanted to get into further down the line.  Naturally Elly was pretty cautious about this deal as it’s quite a specialist area.  So what did she do?  Tune in to find out.   In the news We’ve got two related stories for you this week, both about the mortgage market. The first being a new ‘40-year mortgage product’ which has just been released - and if that wasn’t crazy enough, it’s a 40-year fixed mortgage term!  Not only will your mortgage payments remain the same for the next 40 years, apparently there’s no early repayment charge or exit fee. Madness.  The second news story is ‘Metro Bank launches ‘near prime’ mortgages’ which means people with a credit score that’s below average will be able to get a mortgage.  This includes people who have CCJs that are unsatisfied and the products are 80% loan-to-value which is quite surprising.  Will there be similar moves with buy-to-let mortgage products? We’ll have to wait and see.    Hub extra This week we’re giving you a poem. It’s a poem that Rob B wrote down at the beginning of his goals book so he always had a constant reminder of it. It’s called Victory by Herbert Kauffman: You are the Man who used to boast that you'd achieve the uttermost, some day.   You merely wished to show, to demonstrate how much you know and prove the distance you can go..   Another year we've just passed through. What new ideas came to you? How many big things did you do?   Time left twelve fresh months in your care how many of them did you share with opportunity and dare again where you so often missed?   We do not find you on the list of makers good. explain the fact! Ah No, 'Twas not the chance you lacked! As usual - you failed to act!   Let’s get social We’d love to hear what you think of this week’s Property Podcast over on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. You might even have a topic you’d like us to cover in the future - if so, pop us a message on social and we’ll see what we can do. Make sure you’ve liked and subscribed to our YouTube channel where we upload new content every week!  If that wasn’t enough, you can also join our friendly property community on the Property Hub forum.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome back to another week and another episode of Ask Rob & Rob. The guys are here to splash the case and dish out some advice.  First up this week we’ve got Andrew and he’s got £2.5m to spend! Throughout the pandemic he’s been running a business that’s been racking up cash reserves and he needs to do something with it.  He thinks property seems the best way to get a return on his money and with financing, could have around £10 million to invest!  That’s crazy money!  However he seems to think that with funds of that size, buying a two bedroom apartment up north isn’t really going to be the best use of his time and money.  So he wants to know how Rob & Rob would invest that amount of money into property.  Our second caller this week is Ed from Southampton.  He’s wanting to invest further afield from home and naturally doesn’t want to invest in the wrong location.  So, he’s asking The Robs which areas in the UK have the biggest void periods and rent arrears so he can avoid looking into these areas.  Do Rob & Rob hold the answers to Ed’s question? Tune in to find out.   Do you have a buy to let or property investment related question for Rob & Rob? You could feature on the next episode by giving us a call on 013 808 00035 and leaving a message with your name and question (normal UK call rates apply).  Or if you prefer, click here to leave a recording via your computer instead. The next question on Ask Rob & Rob could be yours.  Have you joined us over on the Property Hub Forum yet? Our online community is friendly, informative, and the members are waiting to welcome you with open arms. So get yourself over and introduce yourself.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Here’s what the March Market Update has in store for you This month’s March Market Update episode is dedicated to last week’s budget announcement. A lot of you were expecting this episode last week, but we needed time to get all our ducks in a row before we shared what it means for you as an investor.  Here’s what to expect on this week’s property podcast episode Brace yourselves, this may be the most impactful budget on the property market we’ve EVER discussed.  Rob & Rob are looking at the big news that was (and wasn’t) included in the budget.  Here’s just a small snippet of what’s to come in this jam-packed episode:  Taxes Extension of furlough  Universal credit increase extended  The recovery loan scheme Additional support  Free ports It’s the episode you’ve all been waiting for, so go give it a listen.   In the news Even though the budget has taken center stage this month, there have been a few non-budget related news stories.  One being an article in Mortgage Strategy sharing a report from Nationwide, who’ve said ‘prices rebound with 6.9% growth’. At first we thought this could be an anomaly, but now it seems like it’s part of the property cycle.  And if you missed our latest episode on where we’re at in the 18-year property cycle, you can catch that here.    Let’s get social We’d love to hear what you think of this week’s Property Podcast over on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. You might even have a topic you’d like us to cover in the future - if so, pop us a message on social and we’ll see what we can do. Make sure you’ve liked and subscribed to our YouTube channel where we upload new content every week!  If that wasn’t enough, you can also join our friendly property community on the Property Hub forum.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s Tuesday, so that can only mean that Rob & Rob are back to answer two more listener, property related, questions.  Our first question this week comes from Lee.  Lee has been listening to the podcast for over a year now and is doing an immense amount of research into where he should invest.  Naturally he’s been listening to Rob & Rob and eyeing up Manchester and Leeds, but he’s now turning his attention to Nottingham for the affordability aspect. However he’s having doubts after seeing that in two years, a council estate that was priced at £90,000 is now priced at £130,000.  So essentially, Lee wants to know if this kind of growth can be expected to continue, or do certain areas experience capital growth which then moves onto another area? The second question this week comes from Nick who’s having issues calculating yields.  He’s currently in the process of purchasing his seventh property, the last three of which have been during lockdown - you go Nick! He’s been told that if you achieve a yield between 6-8% then that’s pretty good.  But when he’s been working the numbers out based on the 30% deposit he put down, he’s getting a yield that’s much closer to 20%.  So what’s he doing wrong? What’s the right way to calculate a rental yield? Tune in to find out.   Do you have a buy to let or property investment related question for Rob & Rob? You could feature on the next episode by giving us a call on 013 808 00035 and leaving a message with your name and question (normal UK call rates apply).  Or if you prefer, click here to leave a recording via your computer instead. The next question on Ask Rob & Rob could be yours.  Have you joined us over on the Property Hub Forum yet? Our online community is friendly, informative, and the members are waiting to welcome you with open arms. So get yourself over and introduce yourself.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week we’re taking a look at the real reasons why property prices go up Many people think property prices rise due to supply and demand. Some think it’s to do with inflation, and some think it’s about location.  So who’s right?  Or, could it be a combination of them all?  In today’s episode Rob & Rob are revealing everything! Here’s what to expect on this week’s property podcast episode A few weeks ago, on an episode of Ask Rob & Rob, we had a caller named Jonathan who wanted to know why property prices rise, after reading an article on housing supply.  And while The Robs answered Jonathan’s question, they’re expanding on it today and are delving right into the detail. To kick things off, did you know that each property is in two separate markets?  You may have thought that there was only one market, the property market, but there’s actually two. The services and assets markets.  So now you might be wondering what the difference is between the two, and how they work differently to increase property prices.  And that’s exactly what Rob & Rob are digging into today. They’re taking a look into the report that Jonathan referenced and have dissected it so it’s more digestible.  Make sure you tune into today’s episode for some more valuable knowledge bombs on why property prices increase from Rob & Rob.   In the news This week’s news story is ‘demand for rental accommodation in London collapses’.  Of course, this headline is somewhat misleading as the article is actually referencing a particular type of rental property, which is shared accommodation.  In West Central London, demand is down 43% compared to last year and East London down 19%. This doesn’t come as much of a surprise as London is struggling and you’d expect shared accommodation to be the worst hit over the past 12 months.  Another headline that caught our eye was from Letting Agent Today. ‘Victory for Airbnb in first round of battle for short lets regulation’.  The Scottish Government had drawn up a licensing scheme that would give local councils the power to issue licences on homes that advertised on Airbnb and similar websites.  Meaning that possible short-term lets and holiday lets could need planning permission before being allowed to let, along with stricter health and safety measures.    Hub extra This week’s Hub Extra resource is another book recommendation, but this time from Rob D.  It’s called ‘Alchemy: The Surprising Power of Ideas That Don’t Make Sense’ by Rory Sutherland.  He’s the vice chairman of WPP which is a massive advertising agency. The book is about how everyone in business makes their core decisions based on logic, however most people’s buying habits aren’t governed by logic.  So by approaching things in a logical way you miss great solutions to problems that are often simpler and cheaper than the solution that logic directs you to.  It’s a fascinating book that combines business, marketing and psychology so if you like any of those topics then we recommend you give this a read.   Let’s get social We’d love to hear what you think of this week’s Property Podcast over on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. You might even have a topic you’d like us to cover in the future - if so, pop us a message on social and we’ll see what we can do. Make sure you’ve liked and subscribed to our YouTube channel where we upload new content every week!  If that wasn’t enough, you can also join our friendly property community on the Property Hub forum.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Rob & Rob are back again this week to answer two more fantastic questions. We’ve got a rather interesting first question from Brendan. He’s got a question on the 18 year property cycle, one of our favourite topics to talk about.  Brendan wants to know if Real Estate Investment Trusts (REIT) are likely to experience the same sort of growth in a boom period as residential property? If you’re not 100% sure on what a REIT is and how they work, don’t worry, Rob D covers that along with how they benefit property investors. The second question on this week’s episode is from Antonio.  He’s got a portfolio of properties which he’s had for around 20 years and is now considering selling.  His accountant has advised him that if he moves back into the property for 6-12 months, he won’t have to pay capital gains tax on the sale as it will be seen as his main residence.  Is this a way of getting around capital gains tax? Tune in to find out.   Do you have a buy to let or property investment related question for Rob & Rob? You could feature on the next episode by giving us a call on 013 808 00035 and leaving a message with your name and question (normal UK call rates apply).  Or if you prefer, click here to leave a recording via your computer instead. The next question on Ask Rob & Rob could be yours.  Have you joined us over on the Property Hub Forum yet? Our online community is friendly, informative, and the members are waiting to welcome you with open arms. So get yourself over and introduce yourself.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week we’re taking a look at where we are in the 18 year property cycle Whether you’re a new or experienced investor, the 18 year property cycle is something that you should know like the back of your hand.  For years it’s helped investors determine when they’d be most likely to invest in property and when they’re going to wait it out.  We get asked all the time ‘where are we in the 18 year property cycle?’ and even more so at the minute, ‘is the cycle broken due to Covid-19?’ Well, we’re about to find out. Here’s what to expect on this week’s property podcast episode In 2020 we were hit with a global pandemic that completely brought the property market to a grinding halt.  So naturally people were questioning what this meant for the 18 year property cycle.  But once the property market was back up and running (and more buoyant than people expected), we were then getting asked ‘does this mean we’re at the peak of the cycle?’ If you’re new to the podcast and have no idea what the 18 year property cycle is then don’t worry because we’re going to give you a recap in this episode.  According to the average 18 year cycle, we should now be in the mid-cycle wobble phase.  But is that true or has Covid-19 changed the course? Tune in to find out.   In the news We’ve got two news stories for you this week.  The first one is a note on the evictions ban being extended again. It was due to end on the 22nd February and has been extended to the 31st March at the earliest.  Chances of it being extended again are pretty likely, even though we’re on the right path it’s still not 100% certain that we’ll be back to normal by then.  Another possible policy extension is on the stamp duty holiday. This could be extended by a further six weeks, which isn’t a huge timeframe. A lot of people will complete in time but there will also be many who slip through the net.    Hub extra This week’s Hub Extra resource is a book that Rob B has been reading.  The book was actually a recommendation from a YouTuber called Ali Abdaal and it’s a book called ‘A Million Miles in a Thousand Years’ by Donald Miller.  It’s the story of a writer who was approached by Hollywood screenwriters who wanted to tell his life story.  But when they started putting it together it turned out that it wasn’t very interesting or inspiring and that really made Donald reflect on his life and he decided to live a better story.  In a way it really resonates with the type of reflection that we’ve all gone through over the past year and how we can live a better life when we come out of the coronavirus pandemic on the other side.   Let’s get social We’d love to hear what you think of this week’s Property Podcast over on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. You might even have a topic you’d like us to cover in the future - if so, pop us a message on social and we’ll see what we can do. Make sure you’ve liked and subscribed to our YouTube channel where we upload new content every week!  If that wasn’t enough, you can also join our friendly property community on the Property Hub forum.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s Tuesday and that means Rob & Rob are back to answer two more listener questions. The first question this week comes from Florence. She’s thinking of remortgaging her property as she has around £190,000 of equity tied up.  However, she doesn’t know if she should pay the penalty to get out of her mortgage now, which will be around £1,040, or wait two years when her fixed mortgage rate is finished. She doesn’t yet know which route she should choose, but if she was to release the equity, she wants to try and beat the stamp duty fees coming back into play.  Next we’ve got Martin calling from Hong Kong.  Since he’s been listening to the podcast he’s purchased one small property in the UK with cash. He’s wanting to buy more properties in the UK and with being based abroad (and the current coronavirus situation), buying in cash seems to be easier than buying with a mortgage.  After listening to the podcast and Rob & Rob’s views on leverage, he wants to know if he bought a property with cash, could he then take out a mortgage on it in a year or two?  Is this a possible idea and is it beneficial? Tune in to find out.   Do you have a buy to let or property investment related question for Rob & Rob? You could feature on the next episode by giving us a call on 013 808 00035 and leaving a message with your name and question (normal UK call rates apply).  Or if you prefer, click here to leave a recording via your computer instead. The next question on Ask Rob & Rob could be yours.  Have you joined us over on the Property Hub Forum yet? Our online community is friendly, informative, and the members are waiting to welcome you with open arms. So get yourself over and introduce yourself.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week we’re exploring how QE could dramatically change property prices QE (short for Quantitative Easing) is currently at record levels that have never been seen before.  The approach has discreetly been changed by the government, so as a property investor you must understand what’s going on. And that’s exactly what Rob & Rob are discussing on today’s podcast episode. By the end of this episode you’ll know exactly what QE is and how to take advantage of it. Here’s what to expect on this week’s property podcast episode We get it, QE sounds really boring and while it’s really complicated... it’s also incredibly important. For us, it’s important that you understand QE just as much as you understand leverage or inflation, it’s a core concept to long-term property investing. Here’s what Rob & Rob are be covering on today’s episode on QE: What is QE? Amounts of QE The effects of QE (pre-2020) Asset price inflation since 2009  Why is 2020 QE different? What is the likely effect? What can you do about it? This is going to be an episode that may frazzle your brain a little so you might want to grab a pen and paper and take notes. You may even want to listen to it a couple of times to wrap your head around it but we promise it will be worth your while.   In the news A major news story in the property world this week comes from the BBC. ‘Cladding: Extra £3.5bn for unsafe buildings ‘too little, too late’.’ There’s another issue with the cladding scandal - and that’s the clarity around who it does (and doesn’t) help. And that’s because the government has stated that this funding is applicable to buildings over 18m high. So if you live in a development below 18m, the funding won’t help you, but there will be low cost loans available.  We don’t think this is the end of this ongoing battle. We’ll be keeping an eye on further developments.    Hub extra For Hub Extra this week The Robs are recommending a tool they’ve both been using since the first lockdown.  Rob B used to work on an iPad Pro because he travelled around a lot. But like most people, he’s been stuck at home and this meant the iPad wasn’t an ideal set-up.  So, he invested in a widescreen monitor. So we’re keeping it simple and recommending the very basic widescreen monitor itself. It can increase your productivity when you’re used to working on a laptop or iPad - and as you know… we’re ALL about the increase in productivity.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Rob & Rob are back again with another two great questions to answer. Up first we’ve got Jess.  She put in an offer on a flat and got a response from the vendor that they wanted something a bit closer to the asking price. Jess then put in a counter offer, all cash, £2,500 under the asking price.  In most cases this would be a pretty decent offer that’s likely to get snapped up with the ability to move fast on it.  However, Jess still hasn’t received an answer from the vendor. She hasn’t had her offer accepted or rejected and is questioning if he’s not a serious seller and should she just move on.  The second question this week comes from Neale who has a question about freehold. He has a one bedroom buy-to-let apartment which is one of five within the development.  It had previously been poorly managed and recently Neale and fellow landlords took over the management. The freeholder has recently indicated that they’re willing to sell the freehold to the five apartments.  All five parties are keen to proceed, but Neale wants to know if there’s any real benefit to owning part of the freehold? Will the value of the properties increase if he owned the freehold? Tune in to find out.   Do you have a buy to let or property investment related question for Rob & Rob? You could feature on the next episode by giving us a call on 013 808 00035 and leaving a message with your name and question (normal UK call rates apply).  Or if you prefer, click here to leave a recording via your computer instead. The next question on Ask Rob & Rob could be yours.  Have you joined us over on the Property Hub Forum yet? Our online community is friendly, informative, and the members are waiting to welcome you with open arms. So get yourself over and introduce yourself.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.