Adding Value to Your Investment Property This Autumn

Property investment can be a great way to provide a nest egg for you and your family or a method by which you can turn a quick profit with some relatively simple steps.

Property will always be bought and sold and whilst the market takes dips and dives, it generally puts itself right over time. If you can find the right property, the perfect blend of price and scope for improvement, you may want to make the investment.

The property market tends to be weighted with first-time buyers looking to get on the ladder and first-time buyers accounted for 51% of the United Kingdom’s buying market last year. Those buyers are usually looking for a home that needs little work; meaning investors with means to turn a low-cost property into the buyer-friendly finished article can make a handsome profit.

So which areas should you be focusing on if you are an investor? We have picked several key elements in which a little investment goes a long way.

Bathroom and Kitchen

Of course, the bathroom and kitchen are two elements you can make an investment in to increase the value of a property. Ideal Home Magazine suggests you can add as much as 5% on to the existing property price with a new bathroom, although that may be a smaller increase with a first-time buyer property. The important consideration you have to make is balancing design against cost – it is easy to let your creativity run wild when installing a new kitchen for example, but remember to remain functional, at the lower end of the price spectrum and not get too ambitious. At the end of the day, you need to find the right balance between a striking new kitchen and cost-effectiveness.

Heating

The kitchen and bathroom have a ‘wow’ factor, something that might impress a buyer as they enter the property. A far less visually appealing element to think about is the heating system, and in particular, the boiler. It is likely that a first-time buyer has stretched themselves in terms of deposit and will not want hidden costs or work that needs carrying out immediately, so a new boiler might add peace of mind, and a little more value to your investment.

The benefits are not just short-term stability for the buyer. In HomeServe’s guide to installing a new boiler, they point out that you can improve a home’s energy efficiency with a fresh appliance, even if the old one has not broken down. That is another key selling point, as bills will be lower for the potential buyer, another aspect you can use to move your property quickly.

Garden

If your investment property has a garden, consider giving it a bit of a makeover. When you sell a house, you sell a dream, especially to those first-time buyers. If the garden is overgrown and needing attention, it could cost you thousands of pounds, according to the Express, by giving the buyer the mindset that there is room for negotiation. For little cost, you can tidy up the outdoor space and make it attractive. When buyers look around homes, they picture themselves living there and a nice garden will conjure up images of balmy summer evenings with a barbeque on. That will not be the case if the grass is long and the furniture grotty and crumbling.

Install a New Front Door

Selling a house is all about first impressions, and so is retaining the price point you have set. If a potential buyer turns up at the kerb to find a shabby front door with peeling paint, it sets the wrong tone for the rest of the viewing.

By putting in a new front door, or even just refreshing the old one, you make the house look fresh and new from the outside, setting the scene for the rest of the viewing. A striking colour can also help lodge your property in the mind of the buyer, especially if they have seen several properties in one day. Also, if the area you invest in has some level of crime, installing a secure front door with a new locking system might give buyers some peace of mind.