Property development reading list

[Berserker LM]

MrV said:

Berserker LM said:

What annoys me now is the stupid TV programs still trying to persuade people to invest everything in bricks and mortar, then showing auctions from two years ago. I'm not addicted to property programs BTW, but have caught a few of these recently when my Dad was ill, and totally horrified that the TV companies still spew this totally misleading info. People can, and still are getting themselves into deep st with property. It's a hideous business at the moment, and one I'm very glad I stayed well clear of in the current climate.

Not only that but they only ever gave half the true picture even in the days that anyone could be a developer,I try not to watch them but the times I have there is always the "They paid 150k it cost 20k to get it up to scratch and now it is could be worth 200k,giving then a profit of 30k"

No it doesn't as they never mention stamp duty, legal fees in and out plus agency fees to sell it oh and the all important mortgage fees that go out every month

Absolutely. And it's always the estate agent(s) opinion of what the ghastly magnolia-box-by-the-motorway is worth, not actually "sold" prices. These can now be checked online BTW, try: http://www.zoopla.co.uk/prices?refer=psxggprprc to get a real picture. But there's no point people deluding themselves - the site will flank up anything sold in the last two months, and that's what counts. Valuation surveyors use this info, then deduct a bit more!

[swamp]

Fortune favours the brave!

With all the other developers running scared maybe now is the time to spot a gap in the market somewhere.

Edited by swamp on Sunday 15th March 23:49

[Colonial]

swamp said:

Fortune favours the brave!

With all the other developers running scared maybe now is the time to spot a gap in the market somewhere.

Edited by swamp on Sunday 15th March 23:49

Yes it is. We are currently buying up half finished developments which are cheaper than vacant land at the moment.

Then re submitting to Council, getting approved as either Seniors Living or low cost housing and then selling it on to the Government as essentially the oz equivalent of Council housing. We got in first and although others are trying to get in we are still at the front of the pack

Bit of a change and much lower end than what we used to do, but we are actually making pretty serious cash out of it at the moment.

[selmahoos]

In my rich and varied working day, there is NOTHING more satisfying than those few moments spent walking around a fully restored property (which was previously a sad and neglected dungeon) before giving the keys to the letting agency who then proceed it down Dilapidation Road once again.....

IF you do this right (and newcomers DO sometimes turn out better end product than old hands) then, like anything else, you will succeed. Renovating property you intend to keep and let is currently simple to do. Renovating to sell is better (at the moment) done to order.

Don't listen to people who tell you it'll never work. But don't do it if you can't face the consequences of it NOT working.

[Berserker LM]

Colonial said:

swamp said:

Fortune favours the brave!

With all the other developers running scared maybe now is the time to spot a gap in the market somewhere.

Edited by swamp on Sunday 15th March 23:49

Yes it is. We are currently buying up half finished developments which are cheaper than vacant land at the moment.

Then re submitting to Council, getting approved as either Seniors Living or low cost housing and then selling it on to the Government as essentially the oz equivalent of Council housing. We got in first and although others are trying to get in we are still at the front of the pack

Bit of a change and much lower end than what we used to do, but we are actually making pretty serious cash out of it at the moment.

Until your "low cost housing" folk wreck said properties.... Looked at that also before cutting losses. Wouldn't want your insurance premium, mate! Good luck to you though! (Rather you than me!)

[selmahoos]

Berserker LM said:

Colonial said:

swamp said:

Fortune favours the brave!

With all the other developers running scared maybe now is the time to spot a gap in the market somewhere.

Edited by swamp on Sunday 15th March 23:49

Yes it is. We are currently buying up half finished developments which are cheaper than vacant land at the moment.

Then re submitting to Council, getting approved as either Seniors Living or low cost housing and then selling it on to the Government as essentially the oz equivalent of Council housing. We got in first and although others are trying to get in we are still at the front of the pack

Bit of a change and much lower end than what we used to do, but we are actually making pretty serious cash out of it at the moment.

Until your "low cost housing" folk wreck said properties.... Looked at that also before cutting losses. Wouldn't want your insurance premium, mate! Good luck to you though! (Rather you than me!)

After more than 30 years of letting I can assure you that a) high end properties bring FAR more prolems than lo-cost and b)the lo-cost end is where far and away the best money is made.

[Colonial]

Berserker LM said:

Until your "low cost housing" folk wreck said properties.... Looked at that also before cutting losses. Wouldn't want your insurance premium, mate! Good luck to you though! (Rather you than me!)

Sorry - should have made that clear. The oz system works with the government agency owning the development and looking after all maintenance. What we do is source the property, relodge a DA, get approval for another form of development/change of use then sell it on to the agency in question.

[Berserker LM]

selmahoos said:

Berserker LM said:

Colonial said:

swamp said:

Fortune favours the brave!

With all the other developers running scared maybe now is the time to spot a gap in the market somewhere.

Edited by swamp on Sunday 15th March 23:49

Yes it is. We are currently buying up half finished developments which are cheaper than vacant land at the moment.

Then re submitting to Council, getting approved as either Seniors Living or low cost housing and then selling it on to the Government as essentially the oz equivalent of Council housing. We got in first and although others are trying to get in we are still at the front of the pack

Bit of a change and much lower end than what we used to do, but we are actually making pretty serious cash out of it at the moment.

Until your "low cost housing" folk wreck said properties.... Looked at that also before cutting losses. Wouldn't want your insurance premium, mate! Good luck to you though! (Rather you than me!)

After more than 30 years of letting I can assure you that a) high end properties bring FAR more prolems than lo-cost and b)the lo-cost end is where far and away the best money is made.

Not if you rent to a certain council in the UK. Each one is different, I know, but DO NOT let ANYTHING to any council / low-key housing in certain parts of Cornwall. I can't go into any more detail now, apart from the fact I'm now in the middle of a big legal mess and that bunch of dimbat council housing tts ARE going to buy me my dream car when they finally get it through their inbred skulls that they're on a losing situation. Paperwork means sweet FA when you have a wreacked house, a mortgage company on your back, etc. The legal system is unfairly slow, and in the meantime, you are soley responsible. Mug's game, now even more so. DON'T do it!

[cardigankid]

It's not an easy thing to do if you don't have a reserve of funds to call on. I don't mean to put you off if you can see opportunities and want to have a go, but it's essentially a rich man's game.

Rich folks can afford to buy assets and sit on them if needs be till the market recovers and they can also absorb the occasional hit when things don't go quite as well as expected. If you are on the limit and trying to borrow all your working capital it can be a hairy struggle.

Some of it is just gambling on a rising market, and if you have money, and are in a rising market, it can be relatively easy. But when the market falls - and the development process is a long one and not easy to suddenly pull out of - a lot of people get cleaned out.

Edited by cardigankid on Monday 16th March 08:52

[loafer123]

selmahoos said:

You may also find it useful to set aside a darkened room in your house. On return from the standard 12 hour day it can be comforting to lie on the floor in said room adopting the foetal position, rocking gently backwards and forwards whilst crooning Ukrainian funeral poetry to yourself.

There are also some good days. Usually when the Council offices are shut.

Have a - and so true.

Colonial - I thought HA design requirements were such that most modern private developments weren't of sufficient standard or size?

[Colonial]

loafer123 said:

selmahoos said:

You may also find it useful to set aside a darkened room in your house. On return from the standard 12 hour day it can be comforting to lie on the floor in said room adopting the foetal position, rocking gently backwards and forwards whilst crooning Ukrainian funeral poetry to yourself.

There are also some good days. Usually when the Council offices are shut.

Have a - and so true.

Colonial - I thought HA design requirements were such that most modern private developments weren't of sufficient standard or size?

Depends on the area. The legislation in my state allows for no carparking and things like that if it is located in an appropriate area (generally 400m from a business zoned area or 800m from public transport) which can dramatically increase the yield. It also overides the Floor Space Ratio requirements so you can put a substantially larger development in depending on the zone

[loafer123]

Colonial said:

loafer123 said:

selmahoos said:

You may also find it useful to set aside a darkened room in your house. On return from the standard 12 hour day it can be comforting to lie on the floor in said room adopting the foetal position, rocking gently backwards and forwards whilst crooning Ukrainian funeral poetry to yourself.

There are also some good days. Usually when the Council offices are shut.

Have a - and so true.

Colonial - I thought HA design requirements were such that most modern private developments weren't of sufficient standard or size?

Depends on the area. The legislation in my state allows for no carparking and things like that if it is located in an appropriate area (generally 400m from a business zoned area or 800m from public transport) which can dramatically increase the yield. It also overides the Floor Space Ratio requirements so you can put a substantially larger development in depending on the zone

Thanks. Sounds like we need to get a bit more practical like you guys.

[Colonial]

http://www.planning.nsw.gov.au/planningsystem/pdf/...

Quick note from the NSW department of planning if you are interested in any more info. It makes sense - mainly because public housing is a state government thing rather than local council I guess.

[Dr_Gonzo]

selmahoos said:

Berserker LM said:

Colonial said:

swamp said:

Fortune favours the brave!

With all the other developers running scared maybe now is the time to spot a gap in the market somewhere.

Edited by swamp on Sunday 15th March 23:49

Yes it is. We are currently buying up half finished developments which are cheaper than vacant land at the moment.

Then re submitting to Council, getting approved as either Seniors Living or low cost housing and then selling it on to the Government as essentially the oz equivalent of Council housing. We got in first and although others are trying to get in we are still at the front of the pack

Bit of a change and much lower end than what we used to do, but we are actually making pretty serious cash out of it at the moment.

Until your "low cost housing" folk wreck said properties.... Looked at that also before cutting losses. Wouldn't want your insurance premium, mate! Good luck to you though! (Rather you than me!)

After more than 30 years of letting I can assure you that a) high end properties bring FAR more prolems than lo-cost and b)the lo-cost end is where far and away the best money is made.

Could you expand on this a little? I'd be interested to know your experiences in a bit more detail.

Thanks

Edited by Dr_Gonzo on Monday 16th March 11:15

[Mattygooner]

Hmmmmm, not a good idea just yet, but the time is coming where it will be a good idea, although, you will be up against the big boys soon, they are all preparing funds for resi projects projects.

I work currently in the commercial Property side, and currently it is not a nice place. No money, Developments folding, plans folding redundancies and severe lack of funding. The biggest funders of Commercial Property were RBS/Anglo Irish and HBOS. With them going down the pan, it leaves GE, Co-Op and Sanatander with the cash, but they are tentative. The need for housing is lower, lots of empty and reclaimed Property about, hell even the HSBC tower in Canary Wharf is a repo job and the big boys have rights issues.

The agents are laying off left right and centre, they all spent alot of money on Big acquisitions recently and are now paying for it.

It's not a nice place to be at the moment. But it will get better, it always does.

If your serious, start preparing, but don't jump in with both feet.

[Landlord]

swamp said:

Fortune favours the brave!

But not the reckless...

Edited by Landlord on Monday 16th March 11:31

[Trommel]

selmahoos said:

Renovating property you intend to keep and let is currently simple to do.

Unless you are at the other end of the country whilst trying to do it ...

[shirt]

how to rescue a house: i bought this as i was looking for a derelict property and needed to know how to go about purchasing, applying for grants etc.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/How-Rescue-House-Unloved-P...

the housebuilder's bible - bought because i wanted something with a UK focus showing the whole process from start to finish with cost estimations for each phase.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Housebuilders-Bible-Inside...

tbh though, i haven't read either either other than the first day when they arrived from amazon.

as others have said, if you need books then its maybe not the time to be doing this as a full time career.

[monthefish]

V12Les said:

I shouldn't give up your job if i were you.

Do it as a side (evenings, weekends etc), and if you get to the stage where you are successful, and can go full time, do so.

[Colonial]

And just a side note

I don't classify buying a run down house, renovating it then selling it as property development by any stretch of the imagination. Buy a run down house, knock it down, build units on the land, sure. Lick of paint and a new kitchen? no.