I have purchased three properties from this company over past 5 years and can give you detailed information from my own experience. Two recent ones have been purchased in the Northeast whereas my first property was in Lancashire in 2017. Prices are over £15,000 higher than before (£69,999 compared with £54,999). I was a bit nervous initially before I bought my first property. Now having been with the company for over 5 years, I can confirm that they do deliver on everything they promise. What they promise is very clearly laid out on their website and in this YouTube video.
https://youtu.be/RsWS41uxUbo
Section 3 in this video gives you their background and who they are and how they work. From my personal experience, I have not found anything in here which is not true.
They state that they make their money from buying well and renovating at low cost – so they can offer a competitive price – yet still make a profit. They also get more rent overall from their tenants than they have to guarantee to their investor owners; and this is how they cover their costs and guarantee the rent. I think the business model is great and seems to be very efficient.
They effectively become your tenants and pay you an agreed net guaranteed income and maintain the properties at their cost. For long term investors this is ideal. From my own experience, I would say that such property investments are only suitable if:-
1.You are happy to be 100% passive investor
2.You are looking for long-term property investment
However, if you are looking to do it all yourself or buy cheap properties, renovate them yourself, and flip them – then this company is NOT suitable for you. I know a bit about property myself and I looked around and found that I could purchase cheaper properties. However, when I did the calculation on everything I would need to do after purchase, their total package deals seemed to be better value overall. They also do not do mortgages upfront, although you can re-mortgage later, once you have owned the property. They now say they may start offering upfront mortgages next year.
I think they have TWO big attractions over other property sellers or management companies.
1.One of the big worries for me, as a property owner, has been the fact that the UK Government may raise the minimum EPC standard of rented properties. That would normally involve significant costs for the owner. This company agrees to keep your properties fully compliant at their own cost. Thus, they are paying for all such upgrades. They have already started the process of upgrading their properties to grade “C” or higher. My first property has been upgraded from grade E to grade C at no cost to me when the tenant changed. They did a mini renovation on the property and upgraded the EPC rating at the same time before putting in new tenants – no cost to me.
2.The landlord normally has the legal responsibility for the tenant safety and property maintenance. This was potentially a big issue for me in retirement. They take on board all of the liabilities of the Landlord, and under their system, they become the landlord, and the AST agreements are between them and the tenant. You become a passive owner and are not involved in this. The good thing is that you are then not legally responsible for any tenant or maintenance issues – they are.
They have recently joined Trustpilot and there are a few reviews there from their long-standing clients. They seem to have had similar experience to me.
https://uk.trustpilot.co...view/findukproperty.com
I have also seen them many times on BBC 1 television property shows. The BBC have apparently done 5 episodes now on their family business over the past 5 years. The highlights of all 5 BBC episodes are on YouTube videos on this page.
https://findukproperty.com/testimonials/