By The uncertainty brought about by the pandemic has undoubtedly changed the landscape of the rental market. With many tenants choosing back in 2020 to leave their city pads and instead live in more rural areas with access to outdoor space, it came as quite a surprise and scuppered plans of some investors. It’s a fact that purchasing property to let can be a great investment, but how do you future-proof your property to ensure that your investment is sound in the long term - even against unprecedented events like pandemics?
Consider the short term, as well as long term plans
In the short term, you may need to invest in your property. Whether that’s updating decor, having new flooring fitted, or upgrading kitchen and bathroom fittings. This kind of short-term spending could be crucial for the long term success of your portfolio by maximising the rental yield you could achieve.
A recent tenant survey shows that 24% of people asked would be willing to pay more rent for an up to date, fresh kitchen. A further 20% of people would pay more for a clean modern spec bathroom.
Using neutral tones for kitchen fittings will allow you to add pops of colour to the walls. This will be more cost-effective when it comes to freshening up. The same goes for the bathroom. An easy to clean, modern bathroom can last a long time if looked after. Investing that little bit more to start with will pay off in the long run.
Long term tenants
Not only can making relatively small changes help maximising the rental yield you achieve, it can also help you attract tenants who are looking to put down roots and stay somewhere long term, which reduces void periods and therefore the amount you have to pay to find new tenants when someone gives their notice.
A new generation of households are looking for long term rental solutions more than ever. Some landlords are offering potential clients long term tenancy agreements, which are longer than 12 months. This usually attracts people looking to make their rental property a permanent home. It allows tenants to 'nest' and they will likely take care of the property as if it were their own.
Think about how the space is used
With a significant proportion of the UK population working from home during the pandemic, people have started to realise some of the benefits this presents. With a larger number of people looking to continue working from home once the pandemic is over, if you’re looking to purchase a property consider how you might make room for a separate working space. That could be indoors, or it could be thinking outside the box a bit with an outdoor structure that has electricity. This could become a must-have for people choosing where to live in the near future.
Consider choosing an investment property with multiple income options
Because of a number of pandemic-related factors, holidaying here in the UK has become more popular in recent years. Influences such as COVID and climate change are promoting people to look within the UK to get away from the stresses of day to day life. This ‘trend’ looks like it’s here to stay for a while. With this in mind, consider looking into the possibility of using your property as a holiday let. Perhaps your property is in a beautifully remote location or in the social centre of a city? These could be perfect locations for short term holiday lets.
Even if you don’t plan on using it as such, if the possibility is there then you have another option for income in the future should you need it.
Taking care of the property combined with tenants willing to stay for longer periods of time is a surefire way to future-proof your investment whilst it’s let. Not only this but it will also stand you in a good position when it comes to the resale value of your property.
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