Everybody knows that if you can afford to then investing in property is a great idea. There are different types of property investment in the UK including residential and commercial property. There are a variety of ways that people can invest in property and all of them have their benefits and disadvantages.
The most recent trend in the UK property market has been where investors buy disused or run down housing with the intention of doing them up. This is usually done by investors for two reasons. An investor can find a property that hasn’t been looked after or is damaged in an area that has a strong property market and then look to make improvements to it and repair any damages for a reasonable price. If the property can be bought for a reasonably low price then once the house or flat has been refurbished or improved then the chances are that it can be sold on for a greater value than what it cost to improve. The other reason is many people seek to buy to let. If you can afford to buy to let then it can be a great way to make continued money out of a property as the cost of the mortgage and repairs is usually covered by the rental payments. There are potential pitfalls with this though, if you are unfortunate enough to have trouble tenants and in many cases you may want to use a rental management company which can be expensive.
Lots of investors like to purchase property abroad and an increasingly popular area to do this in the mountains of Switzerland. Many people can be put off buying Swiss Property as there is a lot of legislation involved when it comes to buying Swiss property. This has been set up to restrict the number of outsiders and businesses buying up land. However the typical transaction costs of buying property in Switzerland are lower than in other countries. Typically most Swiss property that is available to those from outside Switzerland can be found in the tourist areas of the cantons making them perfect vacation homes.
Many people often consider buying listed buildings or other graded buildings. These can be very rewarding as owning a listed property is like you own a little piece of history. Despite this a listed property can also often be a nightmare as they are protected and you have to abide by the different legislation for each listed building grade. This means that there is often little room for expansion and any repairs or building restoration need to be carried out using traditional methods. When looking into buying a graded building or looking to restore one it is often worth seeking listed buildings advice from a historic building consultant to make sure you stick to the rules.
