18th Jan2012

Landlords if a picture paints a 1000 words, why take rubbish ones?

by admin

When were introduced to a new person in our lives, or visit a new client, we all know that first impressions count.

When people are looking for a houses to rent, or flats for that matter. In all cities and that includes mine, its competitive, people who are looking to rent in Bristol are looking for the best bang for their buck.

However, time and time again, when letting agents and landlords offer their properties to the market, the pictures need something to be desired. One of the principle senses we have is sight, we react immediately to what we see, more so than what we read.

So why do so many take so little attention with the presentation pictures. No one is expecting you to be a pro photographer, and often all that most agents have is point and shoot cameras, heaven forbid some agents just use their mobile phones.

Often the first and sometimes the only picture you see is the outside of the property. WHY? Actually more people are interested in seeing some good internal shots, like the living room, kitchen or bathroom, for many people the kitchen is actually the essential picture.

For rental property statistics actually show that greater interest is generated by a picture of a kitchen or living room.

As I have already said, we are not all pro photographers; however we can improve how we take and present pictures.

 

  • Firstly Check the settings on your camera are appropriate for what you are shooting.
  •  Make sure you have as much light as possible in the room.
  •  Avoid shooting from the door way and pointing the camera at the window.
  • Even with tenant’s in situ, try placing the furniture in the right places, and having a general tidy up before taking your picture, after all no one really likes to look at other people mess.
  • Bathrooms PLEASE I implore you, remove the bleach and cleaning bottles, it takes a few seconds and makes your picture look so much better.
  •  Take more pictures than you need, from various angles, then review and choose the best ones. It costs you nothing.
  •  Learn how to crop pictures and stitch them together to give a much bigger and wider angle picture of the room.
  •  Tenants love bigger rooms, make sure you capture that.
  •  Tenants want to see the benefits of renting your home over another, so make sure you highlight the benefits
  •  If it’s possible create a mood with your picture.
  •  Take your time, don’t just point and shoot. Review what you see through the lens.
Thank you for taking the time to read this article. If you have found this article interesting and useful, please feel free to leave a comment, or take the time to read some of our other informative articles.
If you have property in Bristol, please feel free to contact me, for free advice and further information. I have been a Property Agent for over 15 years, and always welcome the change to help and assist others in property related matter.
You can either give us a call 0n 0845 652 1428 or contact me via our website. www.igloolets.com
Category : landlords, move in
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30th Aug2011

How long will it take to rent out my property?

by admin

When valuing a property for letting I am often asked during conversation with Prospective Landlords, “How long will it take to let out my property” Each landlords circumstances are different, some want to hit the ground running so like to be prepared and think ahead. For some others they need to schedule maintenance works or remodeling improvements, in line with availability dates.

I would always say that the earlier you market the property, is better in the longer term.

If you wait until a property is vacant before you beginning marketing, you then have to allow the time it takes for suitable tenants to be found, referenced, safety checks and paperwork to be completed. In some cases the prospective tenant may even have to serve a month’s notice on their existing Landlord, before they can move in.

The problem with this is that there can be a lengthy delay between, periods, when someone actually expresses interest in a property and when actually funds actually begin to get to the landlord. Marketing a property earlier can reduce void periods between tenancies to a few days, even hours in some cases.

One secret to success in letting out your property, is to have it professionally managed by a letting agent specialist such as Igloolets.com. It is a common trait of Landlords to focus on the initial let, but it is more important to focus on what happens during the tenancy and in between lets. If you decide to have your property managed, ask how your agents plans ahead , will they communicate with the tenants or expect the tenant to communicate beyond the fixed term of the tenancy, to find out their intentions.

Also ask to see the agents terms and conditions to see if there are any hidden charges, regarding renewal fees, Will the tenants be charged at the end of the first 6 months, this is often a big turn off to tenants when they are considering what to do at the end of the fixed term. Even for the Landlord paying an additional remarketing fee along with a void period may well mean you end up paying in more ways than one.

At igloolets.com we like to have regular communication with tenants and Landlords we feel I makes for a longer and better relationships. You can also be assured that at Igloolets.com were feel that charging a tenant and Landlord renewal or re=lettings fees on our managed properties is unfair. So you can feel confident that you will not be stung by any small print hidden charges.

Why not check out our website www.igloolets.com for more information, or call us on 0117 230 5056 you can also email us at admin@igloolets.com.

Category : landlords, move in, tenants, tenants incentives, Uncategorized
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28th Apr2011

Over 80% of tenants ignore EPC’s

by admin

In my 15 years as a Bristol Letting agent,  besides the tenancy deposit scheme,  the other  most contentious of issues everbrought into the private rented sector was the requirement for the EPC certificate. (Energy Perfromance Certificate)

The well known consumer magazine which, has made what is not a really astonishing discovery, most tenants don’t know about EPC’s or care about them when looking for a property.

LOCATION LOCATION LOCATION still rules.

It would appear that tenants really coun’t care less about the properties energy performance.  If only they realised, that if they did they could be saving money by acting on the stats.

Single glazed windows, lack of cavity wall and loft insulation, allow the property to act like a sieve in winter when it comes to heating costs.  A cost which is constantly spiralling, often a Letting Agent I was asked to get a heating engineer to call to sort out a boiler because heating costs were high!

The Governments consumer body, Consumer Focus, have recently said that only 18% of both tenants and buyers use an EPC to effect their decision, as to whether to rent or purchase a property

This figure contrasts with the supposed tenant priorities, as one in seven claimed ‘energy efficiency was top (after price and size) of their property “wish list”‘

In fact 80% of tenants are ignoring EPC’s altogether, which seems incredibly silly in consider of current and projected heating cost in the near future.

 

 

 

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19th Oct2010

How to clean up as a Landlord AND get your property let fast

by admin

Standing out from the ground, is of paramount importance for any Landlord, even into today’s market, which has a property shortage, and plenty of tenants.  Just having an empty property does not mean you will have a queue of tenants.

Lots of landlords include incentives or extras to entice people in and one thing not often included in any landlords package of extras or incentives is A CLEANER.

Ok before you scream at me, about the benefits and the cost. So lets for a second consider the cost lets say £10 per hour, 2 hours every other week, so thats £40 per month.  That could be a sizeable chunk form any Landlords annual profit. But there are benefits, so Hold up wait before you leave

Carpets , fixtures and fittings and things like kitchens and bathrooms will last much longer if they’re cleaned regularly and properly. You also stand a much better chance of getting your property back in a respectable state at the end of the tenancy. Think about it, If you get a few moire years out of that carpet, bathroom and kitchen, you’ll easily save the cleaning fees.

If you have a house of sharers or students tagging the cleaners costs onto the price of the rent is hardly noticeable to the ingoing tenants, but they will notice that the house has a cleaner, which would seem a great benefit.

As you would know, ITS ALWAYS SOMEONE ELSE’S RESPONSIBILITY TO DO THE CLEANING!! So it never gets done.

Especially when New prospective tenants are looking around, having a house that actually looks clean makes it a better bet to be be snapped up quick than one that has black mould around the baths and sinks. If you nip that sort of thing in the bud you could easily save a few quid in repairs, PLUS its another pair of eyes to keep an overall look on the house.  A cleaner could be your early warning system.

If your considering investing in property in Bristol, why not give me a call, I have been a specialist in the private rented sector in Bristol for over a decade.www.igloolets.com or you can contact me 24/7 on 0845 652 1428

Follow me on twitter @kevinigloo – for topical tips, tricks and ideas for Landlords.

Category : landlords, Public
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22nd Jul2010

How to let your property fast and easy – presentation is the key

by admin

Your property must stand out amongst the competition, and believe me there will be competition. If your interior is drab and has outdated decor and floor coverings, you will have to invest and I use the word invest with intention, because it is an investment, to attract would be tenants of the right calibre.

Good presentation these days is vital if you are to secure and keep in occupation GOOD tenants.

Prospective tenants will pay good money, if the property is well presented. Trying to get that extra 20/30 or extra 40 pounds a month, seems like a good idea, at the time.  More on the simple maths of void properties will come later in another blog. But think on this, if your property is worth £800-1000 per month and it sits empty for the sake of a coat of paint, just think of how much paint you can buy for the 400 enough to let your property quicker because it looks fresh.

If you do need to decorate, go for neutral floor coverings and walls. As it is a main hallway, laminate flooring in the main hallway with a carpet runner possibly in the middle will wear much better than full carpeting. But a whole house of laminate flooring or sanded boards is a very bad idea. Some landlords think it is a cheap and cost effective floor covering which will last for decades. That in realistic terms is not the case. When did you last walk into a rented property that the landlord had removed the fireplace and instead of renewing the boards just concreted the space where the hearth was! Yes I know we have all seen it. Be practical about floor coverings. Natural is good but it can get dirty in high foot traffic areas. So choose a neutral BUT practical colour.

Stripped walls are by far the best, back to plasterwork. It is far quicker and easier to paint plain plasterwork, if you think it might look a bit plain, mix and match your rooms with magnolia and beige in alternate rooms.  Keep magnolia for the main hallway, since this is the area of most traffic. It can easily be touched up between lets. You can always paper one accent wall if you really want to inject something different for the eye to focus on.

Ensure your appliances are in good condition. Always go for a built in oven and hob, they are easier to replace and keep clean. Free standing cookers look down the side and see all the grease. It’s always there!! Nothing looks worse when showing a property with a cooker that is dirty down the sides. Electric hobs whilst not being everyone’s favourite to cook on are easier to keep clean.  With Fridges and Freezers and especially washing machines, it’s just not worth buying second hand.  With  both go for something that does not have all the whistles and bells just plain and simple, unless of course your in the upper professional bracket of rentals, where brand names are an important part of the let. But there is no need to put a smeg or Melee brand appliances, in a middle of the road apartment. But it is important to put in appliances that function and work. Believe it or not the lack of a washing machine, which I know lots of landlords don’t want to provide, can be a deal breaker!! All for the sake of £250. In my extensive experience as a managing agent and landlord,  Location of your property is important, BUT presentation comes a close second.

In a future blog, I will cover the other main facets of your property such as a practical bathroom and kitchen, with cost saving tips and practical issues with making your property appealing to the rental market of today, not last year. Just who did say IKEA furniture was not practical for rented property? Watch this space to find out.

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