4 FREE Things You Can Do To Skyrocket Your Property Journey EVEN If You’re Not Deposit Ready Yet
It’s perfectly normal to feel a little lost, overwhelmed, scared even when you’re even thinking about investing in property. It is a big bloody deal. Often we don’t start something because it FEELS huge, too much.
Imposter syndrome can kick in. Who the hell are you to become an investor? A Landlord? What will everyone think? It’s easier to carry on as you are, keep saving, top up the bank account?
And think about it next month, next year…..never?
No! Firstly, sod everyone and their thoughts. They’re not you. They’re not living your life.
You are doing you! You are growing, evolving, becoming you.
And despite the media hype, I still believe that investing in Buy to Let property is where it’s at. No, it’s not a quick route to replacing your income, giving up your day job or becoming instantly rich overnight.
It’s about financial independence, giving you control over your life, to live and love it on your terms. To feel grounded, secure, the confidence to make better decisions for the now and for your future. To give you options.
And the beauty of property is that unlike numbers in a bank account or shares, it has the power to change and transform lives. Yours and those that live in your property. It’s an opportunity to provide a decent, warm, safe space for an individual, a family or couple to grow and flourish, all whilst giving you an income, a pension pot, stability. It’s an asset that keeps on giving, that makes a positive and inspired impact.
But I do understand, it’s daunting when you’ve never done it before. Where to start, what if it goes wrong, how do you take the first step? What is the first step? When should you start?
I suspect you already have a niggle if you’re reading this. You know this is the direction you want to take, even if you haven’t even started saving yet and the thought of spending so much money scares the shit out of you.
But you can take action even before you’re deposit ready. You can skyrocket your journey by getting yourself ahead of the game, by getting confident, sassy and a little Landlord Queen bad assy, ready to go. Because as they say, knowledge is power.
Here’s how….
Suss out your finances
Research and learn
Get clear on your savings goals and take action
Stay in your own lane, get and stay inspired, focus
Ok, let’s do a bit of a deeper dive. Ready? Let’s go…
Suss out your finances
Credit Score
Check out your credit score – Your Credit Score is your Financial CV. It’s what any lender is going to be looking at, so your first port of call is to make sure it’s polished (to almost perfection) and mortgage lender worthy.
Your credit rating (Rated from 0-999 - the higher the better!) is based on your credit history, which means opening credit accounts, managing debt and making payments on time.
It'll affect your ability to get approved for mortgages, loans and credit cards…and your credit score will also affect the interest rates and types of products you’re offered.
Basically, the higher your score, the better you look for a lender and the lower the rate you’ll be offered. I think that’s a bit of a win win to be honest.
So your aim is to give that credit score a glow up (as much as possible) so it’s irresistible to lenders.
So first things first, you need to check out your credit score using Experian, Trans Union or Equifax. It’s simple, easy to do and there are free options.
And if you need to improve your credit score, you can, because you’ve taken action now before you’re ready to take the leap of faith and invest, you’ll have time to improve it whilst you save for your deposit.
Tax Position
Everyone’s fave topic, not! It’s not the most glam of things to talk about, but it’s really bloody important.
Understand what your tax position will be if you invest in a property. A tax whiz I am not, so seek out professional advice, ideally someone who specialises in Buy to Let property. It may affect how you buy the property, but it’s better to know now so you can plan for the future and make it as fabulous as possible.
The Money Magic
“How much money do you need?”
This is a frequent conversation I have….
“Well, I’ve been saving, but I need to save more…!”
“Ok, but do you know what you need?” I ask.
“Well, I was talking to Karen at work the other day and she said I need to save at least ‘x’ amount.”
“….Oh really, has she got investment properties?”
“No, but she knows someone that does and she was reading this article about investing in the local paper…”
“Oh, right! So she doesn’t really know then….??”
This is the thing, we’re so good at listening to what others think, read an article in a biased paper, or watch the opinion of another on TikTok. TikTok is not gospel, FYI (as much as my boyfriend thinks it is!!!)!
Start the research now, rather than when you think you have enough money to invest… get all the facts, lay them out, understand your position today, so you know exactly where you’re going and what you need to do to get there. From this you will gain the clarity, and a clear path you can to take to get you there.
Find an amazing Independent Mortgage Advisor
It’s never too soon to start talking to a Mortgage Advisor - they can give you hints, tips and additional knowledge as to what lenders will be looking for, and any issues you may come across so that you can be thoroughly prepared. You’ll have a better understanding of mortgage repayments and what rent you’ll need to achieve on your investment property, which will help your location and property research too.
Research and Learn
Go crazy on the tenant, property and location wishlist
Figure out the kind of tenant you want, the type of property that fits, whether you want to manage your own rental (Side Note: Feels scary, right? Honestly, it isn’t as time consuming or difficult as it is made out to be…want a chat about it? I’m the Queen of Property Management and I can help you with that!! Click here) because this will determine how far you’re prepared to look for an investment, then research the shit out of areas, like your life depends upon it.
Start getting to know the areas inside and out …the schools, the local restaurants, employment opportunities, transport links, how long it takes to get into the city, what the tenant demand is like, what others think of the area (read the threads of message boards online)...and start visiting your potential areas.
What are you looking for?
Just an FYI, quite simply, an area that has high demand from your ideal tenant and one which will give you capital growth over time. You’re looking for up and coming areas that have good transport links, good employment, local amenities and that have indicators like local investment, properties that you can visibly see are being improved (extensions, refurbs) and crime rates that are dropping, not increasing.
(Want to know more? I’ve got loads to share on this topic in my course, Decoding Buy to Let; The Fabulous Female Way)
This is simply about choosing a property that will give you a good income now (from the monthly rental payments) and will increase in value over time.
Knowing roughly what type of property you’re going to be looking for now and researching potential areas will give you a good indication of the budget you’re going to be working towards and how much you’ll need to save and what kind of Return on Investment you’re looking at.
I often find that people have this ‘idea’ of what they need in terms of a deposit, fees and mortgage, and either stop saving too soon, or far surpass the amount they need, meaning they could have invested sooner (with a nice additional savings/refurb pot).
The beauty of collating your info now, is it reduces the time wasted later… you can create a clear, intentional plan to get you moving towards your financial fabulousness, often far sooner than you thought possible.
Get Clear on your Savings Goals and Take Action
If you need to get saving, create a savings plan.
How much do you need to save to make those property dreams a reality and when do you want to achieve your savings target by?
How much can you realistically save from your income?
Do you have debt (credit card, loans etc) that you need to pay off?
Is there a promotion you could go for (that you want) that could increase your savings power?
Are there subscriptions that you either no longer use, or aren’t useful that you could cancel and add to the savings pot?
Can you forgo that holiday, or scale it down to reach your target quicker, make your own coffee in the morning for the commute rather than hitting the local coffee shop? This caffeine junkie would struggle, but girl, you know it all adds up.
Open up a separate savings account specifically for your deposit and automate the savings after you’re paid, so it becomes just another bill. After a while, you won’t even miss it.
There are also some brilliant auto saving apps calculate how much you can afford to save, ‘round up’ your purchases to your nearest pound and save the difference for you. It’s worth doing the research and see if they could work for you i.e. Plum and Chase but mindful that you can often find better interest rates elsewhere.
For further money saving tips, there are some amazing accounts on instagram that will take your saving plans to dizzying and exciting heights, such as @budgetjonesdiary_ @thebougiebudget_uk @confessionsofa_budgetqueen
Stay in your own lane, get and stay inspired, focus
The Curse of Comparisonitus
The thing is, your situation is completely different to everyone else. Your circumstances, goals and desires will differ massively from the next person AND no one knows it all!!
I need you to remember that, because it is so easy to fall into the trap of comparisonitus, and think that you need to do exactly what that person on Insta is doing, when in reality it isn’t a fit for you. There is a simple framework to follow, that is adaptable and flexible to work for you. Follow the accounts that inspire you, surround yourself with people that will have your back, cheer you on and don’t take on the advice of those that wouldn’t even dream or be brave enough to do what you want to do.
You’re brilliant. You’re magic! Stay in your lane, focus on your goals and make those dreams happen.
Start before you’re ready. It’s a mistake we’re all guilty of…waiting until we think we’re ready, the perfect time. Is there even such a thing?
Educate yourself now, start taking action, allow the momentum to build and the beautiful journey of buying your first Buy to Let property investment unfold as it’s meant to.
Ready to learn?
I created Decoding Buy to Let; The Fabulous Female Way just for you. It’s a self-study online course that has all of the above and more, designed for the busy woman. It’s a simple and easy to follow framework (no overthinking needed!), bite-sized modules (you can squeeze in on your commute) that will fit with your own Buy to Let goals and dreams, and will give you all the info you need to get going with your journey.
We have this tendency to think anything that is worth doing needs to be difficult. I’m here to tell you it doesn’t. Yes, they’ll be bumps along the way, the odd curve ball here and there, but investing in a life-changing property for long term investment does not need to be over complicated.
It’s about going at your own pace, taking it one step at a time, doing the research and enjoying the ride!!
…and believing in yourself. Check it out here. Invest in you. Invest in your future and make it brilliant!
