Buying a new car is never easy. A lot of information is required while searching for the best auto loan deals. Auto loans can be difficult to understand, but with a little homework, you can grab the best deal with low interest rates.Do not be a Careless Car BuyerWhen you enter the automobile market to buy a new car, you should look for auto lenders that provide quick approval, dedicated customer support and low interest rate. It is important to clarify your doubts before signing the loan contract. If you sign the loan contract without asking enough questions, you will have to accept whatever terms the lender offers to you.Usually, car buyers look at the monthly payment amount and if it’s low, they sign the loan contract. They do not even take note of the loan terms, interest rates or the actual price of the car. Remember that if you behave like a careless car buyer, you will end up with a high rate on the loan.Beware of Loan SharksA loan shark is always looking for a victim. Usually, loan sharks are unlicensed money lenders. They provide little or no paperwork to car buyers. They don’t even provide clarity to you about the interest rates on the loan.On-Hand Advice for Finding Low Rate Auto Loans· Take your time to understand the different types of interest rates.· It’s important to know the monthly payments towards your car.· Calculate how much you’re actually paying for the car.· Explore other auto loan deals.· Watch out for a loan shark. They may seem friendly at first, but borrowing from them is never a good idea.· Compare interest rates from other sources such as banks, credit unions and online auto financing companies.· Always know your credit score because a good credit score will fetch you a better interest rate.· Don’t sign up for a longer auto loan term. It is because you will end up paying more money towards interest.· Be aware of the add-ons such as chrome plating wheels, wheel locks, seat-warmers, etc. When you purchase add-ons from the dealer, it gets added in the auto loan amount which means you have to pay more interest in the long run.When you apply for an auto loan, you must consider several factors carefully and then, make a decision. It is important know the monthly payments as well as the interest rates before signing the loan contract. Remember that if you are careless car buyer, you will not be able to get a low rate auto loan deal.
Commercial Financing Advice – Commercial Lenders to Avoid
This commercial financing article will describe the importance of avoiding “problem commercial lenders”. The article will NOT name specific lenders to avoid, but key examples will be provided to illustrate why prudent commercial borrowers should be prepared to avoid a wide variety of existing commercial lenders in their search for viable commercial financing.I have been advising business owners for over 25 years, and I have encountered many commercial financing situations which have involved commercial lenders that I would not recommend as a result. These problematic situations have especially involved commercial mortgage loans, credit card factoring and unsecured business loans. As a direct result of these experiences and daily conversations with other commercial financing professionals, I do in fact believe that there are a number of commercial lenders that should be avoided. This conclusion is typically based on more than one negative experience or an obvious pattern of lending abuses.I have published many articles which are designed to assist commercial borrowers in avoiding commercial financing problems. One of the most serious commercial financing situations is a commercial lender that causes problems for their commercial borrowers on a recurring basis. It is particularly this type of commercial lender which prudent commercial borrowers should be prepared to avoid unless viable alternative commercial financing options do not realistically exist.Here are a few examples of why certain commercial lenders should be avoided.COMMERCIAL FINANCING AND COMMERCIAL LENDERS TO AVOID EXAMPLE NUMBER 1 – Yes or No?I have published an article which discusses the tendency of many banks to say “YES” when they mean “NO”. Such banks will typically attach onerous commercial financing conditions to business loans instead of simply declining the loan. Business owners should explore other business loan alternatives before accepting commercial financing terms that put them at a competitive disadvantage.COMMERCIAL FINANCING AND COMMERCIAL LENDERS TO AVOID EXAMPLE NUMBER 2 – The Commercial Appraisal ProcessFor commercial real estate loans, commercial appraisals are an unavoidable part of the commercial loan underwriting process. The commercial appraisal process is lengthy and expensive, so avoiding commercial lenders which have displayed a pattern of problems and abuses in this area will benefit the commercial borrower by saving them both time and money.COMMERCIAL FINANCING AND COMMERCIAL LENDERS TO AVOID EXAMPLE NUMBER 3 – Think Outside the BankIn smaller metropolitan markets, it is not unusual for a dominant commercial lender to impose harsher commercial financing terms than would typically be seen in a more competitive commercial loan market. Such commercial lenders routinely take advantage of a relative lack of other commercial lenders in their local market. An appropriate response by commercial borrowers is to seek out non-bank commercial financing options. It is neither necessary nor wise for commercial borrowers to depend only upon local traditional banks for commercial financing solutions. For most commercial loan situations, a non-local and non-bank commercial lender is likely to provide improved commercial financing terms because they are accustomed to competing aggressively with other commercial lenders.Copyright 1995-2007 AEX Commercial Financing Group and Stephen Bush. All Rights Reserved.
The Basics To Starting A Home Based Business
Choosing The Best Home Based Business
Starting a home based business seems like a very exciting endeavor to embark upon and for those who are already very enthusiastic about the particular product or service they intend to offer, this kind of commitment may not seem like such an enormous one to them. However, some caution should be exercised when actually starting the home business, especially if it is done without careful thought and planning it could end up being a costly mistake and an overall bad experience.The following are some points to consider before actually taking the plunge into one’s own home business experience:Making sure there is a market for the intended home based business feature is important. There is little point of setting up a home business based on a service or product that does not have a market as people are generally not interested in what is being offered. Therefore, some time and effort should be exercised to ensure the intended elements are marketable.Consider the importance of having a separate space that is sole used for the home based business. Working within this designated space would help the individual focus better and also keep boundaries evident for others to be aware of. The mental and physical positive points to having this designated space cannot be emphasized enough.Investing in proper equipment for the home based business is also another important factor to consider. Lacking in this area would only end up costing the individual further when these interruptions add cost to the overall business entity even before substantial profits are evident.From a legal point of view all the necessary documentation and licensing regulations and requirements, should be adequately perused and approved before embarking on the home based business venture. Nothing is worse than incurring the wrath of various governing agencies when proper procedures have not been followed.Figure Out What You Are Good At, And What Your Interests Are
Staring a home based business along the lines of the individual’s interest is something to consider as it would be a huge contributing factor to the eventual success of the business.Deciding to do something that one is good at or interested in creates the ideal mindset that will help to keep the business afloat if during difficult times and this is a very important motivating factor for those going into this kind of business venture.As there is really no one to spur the individual to press on, the interests’ factor is what can ensure the desire to succeed stay prevalent always.When a home business is built around an individual’s interest there is also the added advantage of the individual having the necessary knowledge about the choice made that will help to steer the business exercise in the right direction.Going in blind will not be an issue, and good decisions can be made simply based on the knowledge that comes from the interest in that particular area.Also in doing something that one enjoys and likes very much the evidence in the quality of the work being produced will be very visible.When there is a level of excitement around the business environment it can not only be a positive element but can also help the create the ideal work mindset and physical conditioning that dictates eventual success no matter what the challenges are.Most people who venture into the home business based on their interest have been statistically proven to be able to make a success of the endeavor.Making the experience come forth as pleasurable rather than just “work” is often what keeps the individual able to come up with further ideas that will also positively contribute to the innovation of the business, thus keeping it relevant and vibrant at all times.Know What Your Strengths Are-
Being able to identify and tap into one’s strengths is a very positive and advantageous thing to be able to do.The energy one is able to harness from this is immeasurable and often in the single most important factor that contributes to the success of any endeavor undertaken.Using these strengths to further develop one’s natural skills and then leverage it to one’s benefits is also another advantage. The individual will be able to eventually downplay or repair any apparent weaknesses along the way.Traditionally people often tend to focus on the negative elements and in the process of this; they try to make the necessary adjustments to combat this negativity.However, doing so, there is the possibility of paying too much attention to this and forgetting to tap into the positive elements that are brought on by the thorough understanding of one’s strengths.Thus instead of harnessing and capitalizing on one’s strengths, energy is being wasted on correcting weaknesses which will eventually cause valuable time and resources to be wasted.Capitalizing on one’s strengths will bring forth the highest potential in the individual and offer the platforms to expand and explore further avenues to shine and be productive.Taking the time to actually explore the various interests that excite the individual would be one way of specifically identifying the said individual’s strengths.This can be done in a number of ways such as observing what excites the individual, what creates the willingness to extend help even when the circumstances is deemed not likely to improve, being able to identify what sort of activity will most likely attract the interest and commitment of the individual, where and when the individual is most likely to contribute mentally or physically and any other such scenarios that would cause the individual to be more approachable and more likely to be contributive.Research The Market For Your Interests And Skills-
In order to make the right choices when it comes to starting up a home based business endeavor one should first understand the market sentiments and what and where there are companies that fit the interest and the skill intended to be offered for services are located and what the expectations are. This is critical to ensuring the elements that relate to the interest and skill are well tapped into to bring forth optimum results.Perhaps among the first steps to be taken would be to analyze the skills and interest of the individual and then using this to gauge the lucrative aspect and contribution of the choices made.By doing this it is hoped that the ideal match would be made to match the skills and interest with the selected business endeavor for successful results.The likelihood of experiencing problems that would stall the business will be much less if there are relevant skill to be tapped into whenever the situation call for it.To enhance the prospects of attracting the attention of organizations which would be interested in using the expertise offered by the home business entity, the individual would have to ensure the existing skills are impressive and adequate enough to suit the company’s needs.Keeping up to date within the particular field, would help the individual better assess the current market trends, and thus be able to identify areas where his or her particular skills would be needed and appreciated.As there are many companies now ready to outsource their work load, being visible in providing the relevant skills needed by the company would help the individual to attract contracts and other work opportunities for the home business set up.This visibility will also help to create a present for the business entity for any future job opportunities.Having a vision for the new business entity and wanting to achieve it within a desired time frame is always a good place to start when addressing the managing side of the said business. Hopefully this article has given you a start.Use this as a guideline and you will be well on your way to a very successful home based business of your very own.To your great success on your home based business journey, Bob
Buying a Rental Property at a Property Auction
A good way of picking up a property bargain is for landlords to buy at a property auction, but what do investors need to be aware of?The sun has come out this week and with rental demand booming many landlords thoughts are turning to plans of expansion. The figures out this week suggest that property prices may have at last stabilised and could even be about to start on an upward trajectory.The latest residential property auction by Allsop in London on the 29th March has 54 distressed lots. This suggests there are plenty of potential property bargains out there.Finance has been a real problem following the credit crunch in 2008. However, availability in the BTL mortgage market has slowly been improving making further purchases by landlords a realistic option.Financing a property bought at auction For landlords that aren’t in the fortunate position of being a cash buyer they will need some kind of development or bridging finance to buy a property at auction. According to David Sampson of Property Hawk Mortgages, it is still possible to get an advance of up to 85% of the gross purchase costs on a refurbishment property depending on property type and location.Interest rates on this type of loan start from as low as 0. 7125% per month. At the end of the refurbishment period landlords will then look to replace the bridging finance with a more permanent buy-to-let mortgage. Where a landlord can add value to the property they will be able to leave the development profit in the property and effectively take all of their original equity on refinancing effectively securing them an investment property for nothing. The set up fees borne by the purchaser using bridging finance vary depending on the type of property and borrowers circumstances but generally range from 1 to 2. 5% of the loan amount.David Sampson goes on to add: “Completely non-status finance is available up to 70% of open market value from some lender on residential property, even with no personal guarantees on company borrowing!”Essential things to consider when buying at a property auctionBuying at a property auction is a completely ‘different kettle of fish’ to buying property through private treaty. There are some essential things to bear in mind. Remember at auction you are ‘swimming with the sharks’ in the sense that you are up against a room full of professional investors and developers who will often have the edge over you.However, this shouldn’t stop you having a go. Providing you have done your research on the property, and checked all your sums. I everything adds up you could easily walk away with a steal!The essential things to remember are:1. You will need to pay a 10% non-refundable deposit on the day of the auction (so make sure you have the cash in your account and that you are sure before you bid)2. Most auctions have a guide price for the property they have in their sale. Don’t pay too much attention to this. Frequently, the figure is there just to lure in ‘newbie’ punters. The guide price isn’t the same as the Reserve Price. So even if the bids are more than the guide price the property may still fail to sell because the reserve has not been met.3. There is a good reason why property ends up at auction. It’s normally where ‘wreckers’ that need full refurbishment, property with complex legal issues or distressed property end up. Beware of an attractive property that looks is if it should sold through an estate agent. There may well be a complex legal reason (such as onerous or breached covenant) that has made it unsalable in the past. Make sure you get a good solicitor who has experience at buying property at auction and get them to fully check out the property’s title fully before you enter the sale room.4. Don’t be disheartened! It really is still possible to get a bargain. The nature of a property auction is that prices will ultimately vary on depending on who is in the sale room on that day. If it’s a wet and cold Wednesday or even a fantastically sunny Friday approaching a Bank Holiday the professional investors may not to turn up. This could give you a ‘free reign’ to bag that property bargain. Equally, if it is a very small auction that has not been publicised well; then you could end up being the only bidder in the room.
Different Property Investment Strategies Provide Different Property Returns
Property investors all have different goals with their investing and many different influences affect their goals for investment property returns. Some investors buy a property and expect the rent payments to purchase it for them over the years, but other investors look at investing in a property in a prime location which will put them into a negative gearing situation, but they are concentrating more on the capital return they will get from owning a property in a prime position.The market has constantly moving criteria and your view of the market at any one time also affects where you might buy a property and at what price.Take the example of an investor buying a property and using the rent to pay off the property. This property will be getting some principal paid off with the mortgage repayments and in due course there will be an equity value in the property that the owner can use to purchase another property. This method of build a property portfolio is a slower way of doing it but it could well suit an investor whose personal circumstances, knowledge in the market place, financial commitments and so on require this slower strategy. At a later date their situation may well change and then their property investment business plan will probably change too.In this second situation the investor buys a prime position property and there could be several reasons why they may do this. Here are some of those reasons that may cause the investor to purchase a more expensive property:- they have the funds or equity available to use on a more expensive property- they understand that prime position property prices rise quicker than average house prices do and the benefit of this could be that they will have more money quicker, to purchase again if the market is moving up- they want to live in the property themselves in a few years time and want to buy at the lower price- they want to use the negative cash flow as a tax deduction against a high personal income- they could own some positively geared properties and can use the positive cash flow to subsidise a more valuable propertyYou can see how the two different investors would be looking for different investment property returns from the different style of investing they are doing and also that the two different price structures could require different purchasing strategies.Over the years an investor’s view to property investing will most likely change due to the circumstances at the time and that is why property business plans are so important because tabs will be kept on your changing personal circumstances, on the changes with your property and adjustments can be made after due consideration if you so wish.Some investors I know keep on buying in a certain price bracket and have accumulated 50+ properties at the lower end of the market, whereas others I know have started at that level and over time have increased the value of each property they have purchased and are now buying properties in the $900,000 to $1.2M mark. Each investor has their own property investment strategies and plans when building their property portfolio and so they should to get the best out of their property investing.
Planning Is the Key to Happy Traveling
Like all other things, planning plays a key role for a successful and happy traveling experience. Here are some important travel tips that could help you plan and enjoy your holidays. Travel tips such as Air travel tips, cheap airfare tips, travel insurance tips, and travel packing tips would save you from hassles of being caught off guard during travel.The following paragraphs outline various travel planning tips, travel-packing tips, safety travel tips and other useful tips that could help you in planning a memorable holiday and travel plan.Travel Tips for Planning Destination Various travel guides list many destinations depending on your taste and purpose. While adventurous people would like to go for hiking, jungle trips or river rafting, couples would like to select romantic destinations. Also, confirm the climatic and weather conditions so that you can have proper clothing to enjoy the holiday. Having right international travel tips and outline of the possible expenses in the destination would help you in managing travel within your budget.Free Travel TipsFree travel tips, yeah it is true. Search local magazines or websites to find various free travel tips and free holiday travel offers. You can find many travel offers packaged with the purchase of some consumer electronic items or other household goods. Some good but not-so-popular destinations also offer down to earth packages for a fun filled vacation.Free Airfare Tips Some hotels and resorts provide free airfare if you book rooms in their hotels. Budget plays a vital role in your travel. Since traveling expenses usually exceed the budget, so keep some space in your budget for exigencies. In foreign trips, always carry more than enough cash because cash is the only means of survival. With no friends and relatives, cash will take care of all emergencies. There are certain situations wherein your credit card would be of no use and you will need cash to take care of certain expenses.Travel Tips for Planning Your Baggage and DocumentsTravel planning is not just about planning the destination, mode of travel and the best possible resorts. You have to take care of proper documents and packing to enjoy a fun filled holiday and hassle free traveling. Here are some important travel documents tips and packing tips to help you plan a fun filled and hassle free vacation. Travel documents tipsThe most important travel planning and travel documents tips is to keep ready all documents before going on a vacation outside the US or even within the country. For foreign trips, Passport, Visa, Driving License and Insurance coverage are the most important documents that you need to carry along with you. While you may have your passport ready in hand, you will have to apply for a Visa for the destination country. Apply for the visa well in time to avoid last minute jitters.Travel packing tipsTravel Packing tips is necessary to keep you happy and hassle free during your travel. Keep your luggage handy and well organized according to the requirements. Pack your luggage according to weather conditions of the visiting destination. An extra luggage often becomes a liability. For certain items, it is cheaper to use and throw them in the destination itself rather than carrying an extra baggage for them.Home safety travel tipsDo not forget to ensure the safety of your home, car, and other properties such as garden while you are traveling. You could seek help from some friend or security services to keep vigil on your home.
Buying a Rental Property at a Property Auction
A good way of picking up a property bargain is for landlords to buy at a property auction, but what do investors need to be aware of?The sun has come out this week and with rental demand booming many landlords thoughts are turning to plans of expansion. The figures out this week suggest that property prices may have at last stabilised and could even be about to start on an upward trajectory.The latest residential property auction by Allsop in London on the 29th March has 54 distressed lots. This suggests there are plenty of potential property bargains out there.Finance has been a real problem following the credit crunch in 2008. However, availability in the BTL mortgage market has slowly been improving making further purchases by landlords a realistic option.Financing a property bought at auction For landlords that aren’t in the fortunate position of being a cash buyer they will need some kind of development or bridging finance to buy a property at auction. According to David Sampson of Property Hawk Mortgages, it is still possible to get an advance of up to 85% of the gross purchase costs on a refurbishment property depending on property type and location.Interest rates on this type of loan start from as low as 0. 7125% per month. At the end of the refurbishment period landlords will then look to replace the bridging finance with a more permanent buy-to-let mortgage. Where a landlord can add value to the property they will be able to leave the development profit in the property and effectively take all of their original equity on refinancing effectively securing them an investment property for nothing. The set up fees borne by the purchaser using bridging finance vary depending on the type of property and borrowers circumstances but generally range from 1 to 2. 5% of the loan amount.David Sampson goes on to add: “Completely non-status finance is available up to 70% of open market value from some lender on residential property, even with no personal guarantees on company borrowing!”Essential things to consider when buying at a property auctionBuying at a property auction is a completely ‘different kettle of fish’ to buying property through private treaty. There are some essential things to bear in mind. Remember at auction you are ‘swimming with the sharks’ in the sense that you are up against a room full of professional investors and developers who will often have the edge over you.However, this shouldn’t stop you having a go. Providing you have done your research on the property, and checked all your sums. I everything adds up you could easily walk away with a steal!The essential things to remember are:1. You will need to pay a 10% non-refundable deposit on the day of the auction (so make sure you have the cash in your account and that you are sure before you bid)2. Most auctions have a guide price for the property they have in their sale. Don’t pay too much attention to this. Frequently, the figure is there just to lure in ‘newbie’ punters. The guide price isn’t the same as the Reserve Price. So even if the bids are more than the guide price the property may still fail to sell because the reserve has not been met.3. There is a good reason why property ends up at auction. It’s normally where ‘wreckers’ that need full refurbishment, property with complex legal issues or distressed property end up. Beware of an attractive property that looks is if it should sold through an estate agent. There may well be a complex legal reason (such as onerous or breached covenant) that has made it unsalable in the past. Make sure you get a good solicitor who has experience at buying property at auction and get them to fully check out the property’s title fully before you enter the sale room.4. Don’t be disheartened! It really is still possible to get a bargain. The nature of a property auction is that prices will ultimately vary on depending on who is in the sale room on that day. If it’s a wet and cold Wednesday or even a fantastically sunny Friday approaching a Bank Holiday the professional investors may not to turn up. This could give you a ‘free reign’ to bag that property bargain. Equally, if it is a very small auction that has not been publicised well; then you could end up being the only bidder in the room.
Different Property Investment Strategies Provide Different Property Returns
Property investors all have different goals with their investing and many different influences affect their goals for investment property returns. Some investors buy a property and expect the rent payments to purchase it for them over the years, but other investors look at investing in a property in a prime location which will put them into a negative gearing situation, but they are concentrating more on the capital return they will get from owning a property in a prime position.The market has constantly moving criteria and your view of the market at any one time also affects where you might buy a property and at what price.Take the example of an investor buying a property and using the rent to pay off the property. This property will be getting some principal paid off with the mortgage repayments and in due course there will be an equity value in the property that the owner can use to purchase another property. This method of build a property portfolio is a slower way of doing it but it could well suit an investor whose personal circumstances, knowledge in the market place, financial commitments and so on require this slower strategy. At a later date their situation may well change and then their property investment business plan will probably change too.In this second situation the investor buys a prime position property and there could be several reasons why they may do this. Here are some of those reasons that may cause the investor to purchase a more expensive property:- they have the funds or equity available to use on a more expensive property- they understand that prime position property prices rise quicker than average house prices do and the benefit of this could be that they will have more money quicker, to purchase again if the market is moving up- they want to live in the property themselves in a few years time and want to buy at the lower price- they want to use the negative cash flow as a tax deduction against a high personal income- they could own some positively geared properties and can use the positive cash flow to subsidise a more valuable propertyYou can see how the two different investors would be looking for different investment property returns from the different style of investing they are doing and also that the two different price structures could require different purchasing strategies.Over the years an investor’s view to property investing will most likely change due to the circumstances at the time and that is why property business plans are so important because tabs will be kept on your changing personal circumstances, on the changes with your property and adjustments can be made after due consideration if you so wish.Some investors I know keep on buying in a certain price bracket and have accumulated 50+ properties at the lower end of the market, whereas others I know have started at that level and over time have increased the value of each property they have purchased and are now buying properties in the $900,000 to $1.2M mark. Each investor has their own property investment strategies and plans when building their property portfolio and so they should to get the best out of their property investing.
Planning Is the Key to Happy Traveling
Like all other things, planning plays a key role for a successful and happy traveling experience. Here are some important travel tips that could help you plan and enjoy your holidays. Travel tips such as Air travel tips, cheap airfare tips, travel insurance tips, and travel packing tips would save you from hassles of being caught off guard during travel.The following paragraphs outline various travel planning tips, travel-packing tips, safety travel tips and other useful tips that could help you in planning a memorable holiday and travel plan.Travel Tips for Planning Destination Various travel guides list many destinations depending on your taste and purpose. While adventurous people would like to go for hiking, jungle trips or river rafting, couples would like to select romantic destinations. Also, confirm the climatic and weather conditions so that you can have proper clothing to enjoy the holiday. Having right international travel tips and outline of the possible expenses in the destination would help you in managing travel within your budget.Free Travel TipsFree travel tips, yeah it is true. Search local magazines or websites to find various free travel tips and free holiday travel offers. You can find many travel offers packaged with the purchase of some consumer electronic items or other household goods. Some good but not-so-popular destinations also offer down to earth packages for a fun filled vacation.Free Airfare Tips Some hotels and resorts provide free airfare if you book rooms in their hotels. Budget plays a vital role in your travel. Since traveling expenses usually exceed the budget, so keep some space in your budget for exigencies. In foreign trips, always carry more than enough cash because cash is the only means of survival. With no friends and relatives, cash will take care of all emergencies. There are certain situations wherein your credit card would be of no use and you will need cash to take care of certain expenses.Travel Tips for Planning Your Baggage and DocumentsTravel planning is not just about planning the destination, mode of travel and the best possible resorts. You have to take care of proper documents and packing to enjoy a fun filled holiday and hassle free traveling. Here are some important travel documents tips and packing tips to help you plan a fun filled and hassle free vacation. Travel documents tipsThe most important travel planning and travel documents tips is to keep ready all documents before going on a vacation outside the US or even within the country. For foreign trips, Passport, Visa, Driving License and Insurance coverage are the most important documents that you need to carry along with you. While you may have your passport ready in hand, you will have to apply for a Visa for the destination country. Apply for the visa well in time to avoid last minute jitters.Travel packing tipsTravel Packing tips is necessary to keep you happy and hassle free during your travel. Keep your luggage handy and well organized according to the requirements. Pack your luggage according to weather conditions of the visiting destination. An extra luggage often becomes a liability. For certain items, it is cheaper to use and throw them in the destination itself rather than carrying an extra baggage for them.Home safety travel tipsDo not forget to ensure the safety of your home, car, and other properties such as garden while you are traveling. You could seek help from some friend or security services to keep vigil on your home.
Buying a Rental Property at a Property Auction
A good way of picking up a property bargain is for landlords to buy at a property auction, but what do investors need to be aware of?The sun has come out this week and with rental demand booming many landlords thoughts are turning to plans of expansion. The figures out this week suggest that property prices may have at last stabilised and could even be about to start on an upward trajectory.The latest residential property auction by Allsop in London on the 29th March has 54 distressed lots. This suggests there are plenty of potential property bargains out there.Finance has been a real problem following the credit crunch in 2008. However, availability in the BTL mortgage market has slowly been improving making further purchases by landlords a realistic option.Financing a property bought at auction For landlords that aren’t in the fortunate position of being a cash buyer they will need some kind of development or bridging finance to buy a property at auction. According to David Sampson of Property Hawk Mortgages, it is still possible to get an advance of up to 85% of the gross purchase costs on a refurbishment property depending on property type and location.Interest rates on this type of loan start from as low as 0. 7125% per month. At the end of the refurbishment period landlords will then look to replace the bridging finance with a more permanent buy-to-let mortgage. Where a landlord can add value to the property they will be able to leave the development profit in the property and effectively take all of their original equity on refinancing effectively securing them an investment property for nothing. The set up fees borne by the purchaser using bridging finance vary depending on the type of property and borrowers circumstances but generally range from 1 to 2. 5% of the loan amount.David Sampson goes on to add: “Completely non-status finance is available up to 70% of open market value from some lender on residential property, even with no personal guarantees on company borrowing!”Essential things to consider when buying at a property auctionBuying at a property auction is a completely ‘different kettle of fish’ to buying property through private treaty. There are some essential things to bear in mind. Remember at auction you are ‘swimming with the sharks’ in the sense that you are up against a room full of professional investors and developers who will often have the edge over you.However, this shouldn’t stop you having a go. Providing you have done your research on the property, and checked all your sums. I everything adds up you could easily walk away with a steal!The essential things to remember are:1. You will need to pay a 10% non-refundable deposit on the day of the auction (so make sure you have the cash in your account and that you are sure before you bid)2. Most auctions have a guide price for the property they have in their sale. Don’t pay too much attention to this. Frequently, the figure is there just to lure in ‘newbie’ punters. The guide price isn’t the same as the Reserve Price. So even if the bids are more than the guide price the property may still fail to sell because the reserve has not been met.3. There is a good reason why property ends up at auction. It’s normally where ‘wreckers’ that need full refurbishment, property with complex legal issues or distressed property end up. Beware of an attractive property that looks is if it should sold through an estate agent. There may well be a complex legal reason (such as onerous or breached covenant) that has made it unsalable in the past. Make sure you get a good solicitor who has experience at buying property at auction and get them to fully check out the property’s title fully before you enter the sale room.4. Don’t be disheartened! It really is still possible to get a bargain. The nature of a property auction is that prices will ultimately vary on depending on who is in the sale room on that day. If it’s a wet and cold Wednesday or even a fantastically sunny Friday approaching a Bank Holiday the professional investors may not to turn up. This could give you a ‘free reign’ to bag that property bargain. Equally, if it is a very small auction that has not been publicised well; then you could end up being the only bidder in the room.