Would you buy a new build property with over 30 defects? You might do so without realising it.
Financial pressure on Spanish developers and an unusually wet winter means some owners are discovering problems with their new build properties.
The rain in Spain falls mainly on...well, on the heads of owners of some new build properties, according to a number of experts. Last winter was an unusually wet one in many parts of Spain and a number of property owners have found that their new build house or flat – which they bought in the summer – isn’t as watertight as they thought. And there are other problems which, because some developers are reluctant to spend money putting right minor defects, can take some months to sort out.
Not many buy-to-let investors buy their first property in their 20s, but starting young can pay dividends.
Elaine Duthie had only just left university when she bought her first buy-to-let property. She believes she has a winning formula.
As the last couple of years have shown us, buy-to-let isn’t for everyone. But hundreds of thousands of people have been able to make the sums add up (there are over a million buy-to-let mortgages in the UK). While many women are drawn to investing in bricks and mortar, few buy their first property when they're in their early 20s. But it's an approach that's worked for Elaine Duthie, who was the National Landlord Association Women in Property Awards Young Property Woman of the year in 2009.
Is buy to let back in favour again? And if so, should you invest?
The number of buy-to-let mortgages rose in the last three months of 2009 – the first increase for two years - and rents are edging up again.
If there’s one thing that the credit crunch has taught us it’s that you shouldn’t pile into an investment, such as property, because others are doing it. Although recent surveys show that more investors are taking out a buy-to-let mortgages, rental levels are rising and mortgages are beginning to become more competitive, there is still some uncertainty to come. An election in the summer and a fragile economic recovery mean it’s hard to predict how the market may develop.
