Walsall needs to build 5,400 mixed tenure properties in 7 years..

Head of Juicing @Ashmore Lettings & Sales Ltd Walsall Property Market , , , , , , ,
Walsall needs to build 5,400 mixed tenure properties in 7 years..
Walsall needs to build 5,400 mixed tenure properties in 7 years..

I was having a most interesting chat the other day with a Walsall landlord when we were looking at a property he was thinking of buying. As I am sure you are aware, I am always happy to cast my eye over any potential buy-to-let purchase in Walsall, be that you emailing me a Rightmove/ Zoopla link, a brochure in the post or even treading the carpet and seeing it together. I don’t charge for that, and you don’t even need to be a client of mine.

We got talking about the Walsall Property Market and this landlord brought up the subject of a report he had read that stated almost 1.8m new rental homes are needed by 2025 to keep up with current demand from tenants. He wanted to know what this meant for Walsall.

Well my blog reading friends, some commentators said last winter that buy-to-let was about to die, what with the new stamp duty changes and how mortgage tax relief will be calculated. Others even said 500,000 rental properties would flood the market nationally in the 12 months after the new Stamp Duty rules came into force on the 1st April 2016 as landlords left the rental market. Well, all I can say is, I wish all the landlords of those half a million properties would hurry up and put them on the market – because I have plenty of other potential landlords wanting to buy them!

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Today’s Buy To Let Deal 3 Bed Semi, Alexander Road, Walsall, WS2, With Yields Of 5.95%.

Head of Juicing @Ashmore Lettings & Sales Ltd Walsall Buy to Let Property Deals , , , , , , , ,

A superb spec on this semi in the Bentley area of Walsall. A good sized property with two double bedrooms and a single. It also has double glazing and gas central heating. This is the definition of a buy to let deal that does not need a thing doing to it and is good to go as it is.

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Today’s Buy To Let Deal 3 Bed Terraced House, Bentley Lane, Walsall, WS2. With Yields Of 6.60%.

Head of Juicing @Ashmore Lettings & Sales Ltd Walsall Buy to Let Property Deals

A three bedroom terraced house in the Birchills area of Walsall, WS2.

It’s a very good spec and could be let as is, but there are some aspects of the decor that could be improved. The asking price is for offers in the region of £100k, which is about average for this area.

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Walsall’s humble Semi-Detached house increased by 227% in value

Head of Juicing @Ashmore Lettings & Sales Ltd Walsall Property Market , , , , , , , , ,
Walsall's humble semi increased in value by 227%
Walsall’s humble semi increased in value by 227%

The humble semi-detached house with its bay windows and net curtains has long been ridiculed as an emblem of safe, lacklustre and desperately uncool suburban life; the homes of the likes of Hyacinth Bucket in ‘Keeping up Appearances’ and more latterly Alan Partridge – but they could have the last laugh – having enjoyed one of the highest price growths of any property type in Walsall, up by an average 227% increase in the last twenty years!

The semi is, of course, still hugely popular on new build developments; although slightly more modern in appearance compared to its older ancestor!

The semi can now laugh in the face of its posher detached counterpart, which saw a rise of only 161% in the same 20-year period. Looking at smaller properties, flats/apartments rose 106%, whilst terraced houses did slightly better at 229% although they were starting from a lower base and demand from buy to let landlords has had a big part in driving up the values on that type of house based upon its rental potential.

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5 reasons why NOT to use Gumtree to let a Walsall Property

Head of Juicing @Ashmore Lettings & Sales Ltd Walsall Property Market , , , , , , , ,
5 reasons why NOT to use Gumtree to let a Walsall Property
5 reasons why NOT to use Gumtree to let a Walsall Property

Honestly I could write a book about this. Time and time again through my agency career I would have landlords calling me, desperate for advice after they’ve placed a “lovely” tenant in their property using a free (or low cost) DIY advertising website. The tenant presented themselves as honest, open, and above all very capable of paying the rent.

But the truth is a different matter. They got into the property by deception, and ended up costing these landlords thousands of pounds in damages, unpaid rent, and above all…the stress. These landlords had to cover the mortgage whilst funding the legal battle. One made very difficult because they weren’t aware of all the legislation surrounding lettings. This could prejudice their position in court. Didn’t serve the Prescribed Information? Didn’t register the deposit within 30 days? That means the tenant could actually sue you for 3 times the deposit amount! And there’s more…

It has been said that some 30% of the PRS is made up of accidental landlords (Source: Landlordnews.co.uk). Here lies the problem. As an accidental, or amateur (not a bad thing!) landlord, it is unlikely that they invest the time to make themselves aware of all the legislation surrounding lettings. There is a lot, but as the saying goes “you don’t know what you don’t know,” so most are blissfully unaware – until it goes wrong, and they can do with disastrous consequences!

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Today’s Buy To Let Deal, 3 Bed Semi, Beatrice Street, Walsall, WS3. With Yields Of 6.52%.

Head of Juicing @Ashmore Lettings & Sales Ltd Walsall Buy to Let Property Deals , , , , , , , ,

A 3 bed semi with three reception rooms, utility room and a garage. Not bad going for starters. It’s a decent spec overall, but will need some changes here and there with regard to the decor. Currently marketed with Purple Bricks (01926 267659) with offers over £115k.

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Today’s Buy To Let Deal, 3 Bedroom Semi Detached, Valley Road, Walsall, WS3. With Yields Of 7.14%.

Head of Juicing @Ashmore Lettings & Sales Ltd Walsall Buy to Let Property Deals , , , , , , , ,

This is a must see! A very nice semi detached corner plot in Blakenall Heath, Walsall. I know I keep banging on about it, but the area has changed for the better due over the last few years due to the housing regeneration that has happened in the area. Currently marketed Your Move (01902 596633). It’s a decent spec, but will need some attention in certain areas e.g. the decor. It has gas central heating and double glazing.

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Are Walsall landlords stifling the Walsall property market…?

Head of Juicing @Ashmore Lettings & Sales Ltd Walsall Property Market , , , , , , , , , ,
Are Walsall landlords stifling the Walsall property market…?
Are Walsall landlords stifling the Walsall property market…?

Following the publication of a recent blog article about ‘Generation Rent’ a local homeowner of Walsall contacted me.   He said that he felt that the plight of our Walsall youngsters (first time buyers), was that like of a novice football player trying to bend it like Beckham!  You’re in a minus game playing Beckham at his own game right?  Play him a 100 times and you’re bound to lose 100 times!!  There is no doubt that buy to let landlords have played a major role in driving up property values in Walsall (and the UK) and from that made housing a lot less affordable for the 20-30 somethings of Walsall.

Let us look at how affordable Walsall is.  The best way to measure affordability is to measure Walsall property prices against Walsall average salary (the higher the ratio, the less affordable properties are).  Looking at the table below, for example in 2014, the average value of a Walsall property was 5.95 times higher than the average annual wage in Walsall.

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Today’s Buy To Let Deal, 3 Bed Terraced House, West Street, Walsall, WS3. With Yields Of 6.00%.

Head of Juicing @Ashmore Lettings & Sales Ltd Walsall Buy to Let Property Deals , , , , , , , ,

There is  very nice spec here and can be let as is. Marketed by Goodchilds (01922 312016) and priced at £110k. There is double glazing and gas central heating.

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The 2017 General Election and the Walsall Property Market.

Head of Juicing @Ashmore Lettings & Sales Ltd Walsall Property Market , , , , , , ,
The 2017 General Election and the Walsall Property Market.
The 2017 General Election and the Walsall Property Market.

The past does not equal the future however, it’s as good a barometer as any when it comes to making  attempts to predict it.

Looking and analysing the past 5 general elections I have made some interesting discoveries on the before and after a general election and how this affects the property market…if at all.

Out of the five general elections (1997, 2001, 2005, 2010, 2015) two were not certain (2010 with the coalition government of   Lib-Dems and Conservatives and 2015 with the surprising Tory majority).  So I wanted to compare what happened to the number of houses sold and prices achieved between the three certain elections (1997, 2001 and 2005) against the unexpected ones of 2010 and 2015.

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