Tag: Three Bridges-Crawley

21st January 2016

2 Bedroom Apartment, Three Bridges, Crawley

The Pembroke Park development in Three Bridges, Crawley is ever popular with both tenants and investors alike. Here’s a 2 bedroom apartment on the development being marketed by estate agents Moore & Partners with a guide price of £210000. The property details indicate a price range of £210000 to £230000. For a closer look here is Rightmove link :  http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-39221817.html

Commonealth Dr 18-1-16

The property looks to be in good condition from the marketing photos and the apartment block itself benefits from lift access – always useful for carrying the weekly shopping ! In addition, there is a an underground parking space, a balcony and the property is offered with no chain. Other similar apartments are being offered mostly at slightly higher prices, although the vendors here would presumably like to get as close to £230 000 as they could.

As we’ve said before, flats at Pembroke Park are in an excellent location for access to Three Bridges mainline station (fast trains to London & the South Coast), Manor Royal and Gatwick Airport.

Properties like the apartment featured here attract couples as well as professional sharers. It is therefore good to know that the main family bathroom has a shower over the bath, with tiling up to the ceiling in the “bath area”.

In terms of rent, these apartments are now commanding between £1000 and £1100 pcm. Taking the best and worse case scenarios in terms of purchase price paid and rent achieved, you get a potential range of gross rental yields between 5.2% & 6.3%. Pretty healthy indeed.

If you’re considering investing in property in and around the Crawley area, either now or some time in the future, you can always give us a call for a chat. Our advice is free and if we don’t know the answer to your question, we  almost certainly “know a man who does” ! So, give us a call on 01293 515588 or alternatively drop us an e-mail to crawley@northwooduk.com.

 

 

 

 

19th November 2015

1 bedroom flat, Three Bridges, Crawley

Greenaway estate agents have just put this 1 bedroom flat on to Rightmove, with an asking price range of £175000 to £185000. Located at the popular Pemroke Park development, it comes with an underground parking space and has a balcony.  Here’s the Rightmove link for further details: http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-35472354.html

Pembroke Pk 19-11-15

As we’ve said before, location is vital when you’re considering property investment. It is one of the key factors in determing the length of void periods you might suffer during your ownership of the property.

Location is very good for this particular devlopment which, as a consequence, is popular with tenants and investors alike. If you’re familiar with Crawley, the flat is well placed for access to Three Bridges main line station (fast trains to London), Gatwick airport, Crawley town centre and just a short drive to the Manor Royal industrial estate. So, in our opinion, location is very good.

So what about the yield ?

Flats like this rent for between £825pcm and £875pcm at the present time. Based on the asking price & rent ranges, the gross rental yields are between 5.4% to 6%. Not bad at all, in our opinion.

If you’re looking to purchase an investment property now or in the future, do give us a call on 01293 515588. Even if you’re buying a property through a “rival” agency, we’d be more than happy to view it and give our opinion on the potential yield you might achieve. What do we charge for this service, I hear you ask ! To you Sir, to you Madam…. it’s free. But please, don’t let on to  anyone else ! Alternatively, you can also e-mail us on crawley@northwooduk.com.

 

1st November 2015

2 bedroom flat, Commonwealth Drive, Three Bridges, Crawley

We’ve featured a number of these flats on our blog recently. One reason for this is the location, which ticks a number of boxes and therefore makes them very popular for tenants.  For example, there is good access to Three Bridges main line station for those commuting to London, as well as good access to Crawley town centre, Manor Royal industrial estate and of course and Gatwick Airport.

Here’s a 2 bedroom flat at the Commonwealth Drive development on with Connells at £230000. There’s an open day on 7th November……..so give Connells a call if you’re interested. Here’s the Rightmove link for further details http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-37376022.html

CommonwealthDr 30-10-15You’ll have noticed that over the last few months the prices of these flats has started to creep up. However, so have the rents. Currently 2 bedroom flats in this development are commanding rents of around £1050pcm to £1100pcm. Based on a purchase price of £230000, this flat would give a gross yield of 5.4% to 5.7%.

If you’re interested in this property, please check to make sure that there is a lift close-by.  As it is located on the 4th floor, the lack of a lift would be a definite negative.

If you’re new to buy-to-let and would like some advice on what to buy and where to buy it, don’t hesitate to give a call on 01293 515588. We’d be more than happy to have a chat with you… and we don’t charge for a bit advice ! Alternatively, you can also e-mail us on 01293 515588.

28th October 2015

1 bedroom apartment, Commonwealth Dr., Three Bridges, Crawley

Moore & Partners have just marketed this 1 bedroom apartment in the ever popular Commonwealth Drive development, Three Bridges, Crawley. The guide price ranges from £180000 to £200000. This development is ideally located for access to Three Bridges main line station, the Town Centre, Manor Royal industrial estate and last but not least, Gatwick airport. Location-wise, it is ideal investment property material. For more details take a look at the Rightmove link http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-53724203.html

Commonwealth Dr 27-10-15Rents for apartments like this have been pushing up towards the £900 pcm level and even higher, which seems astonishing for just 1 bedroom! That’s supply & demand for you.

As far as gross rental yield is concerned, if you can secure the deal at the lower end of the guide price range, you’re looking at 6%.  Even at the upper end of the price range the return is still 5.4%.  Not bad at all.  If you’re an investor and in a position to move quickly, do bear in mind that you might be able to drive a harder bargain, particularly if the vendor wants completion before Christmas.

If you’re thinking of making a buy-to-let investment, perhaps for the first time, choosing the right property can seem quite a daunting task. If you would like a second opinion on what to buy & where, we’d be more than happy to have a chat with you. It doesn’t matter if you’ve seen a property advertised with another agent, we’re still happy to give you advice and, what’s more, it’s free ! Give us a call on 01293 515588 or e-mail us at  crawley@northwooduk.com.

19th October 2015

Renovation Project  – Does it Stack Up?

3 bed semi, Three Bridges, Crawley

Here’s a three bed semi-detached house in Crabbett Road, Three Bridges, Crawley, in need of complete modernisation. The property is being marketed by Fox & Sons with a guide price of £260000 to £280000. If you can buy the property at the right price and take care not to overspend on the renovation costs, the property could be a good investment. Here’s the Rightmove link for more details: https://www.rightmove.co.uk/rmplus/property/showPropertyMcr.action?propertyId=37026873

Crabbett Rd 3 BridgesSo I can hear you asking, is it a good buy or not?

Well, there are clearly two aspects to this property from an investment point of view. Doing it up and then either selling or letting it out.  Let’s consider the property from the point of view of renting.

Assuming that you’re not a “slum landlord”, the property clearly needs a top to bottom revamp. You’ll also notice from the picture above that the house next door has off-road parking to the front and what looks a garage at the end of the shared driveway. In our opinion, both off-road parking and a garage would be highly desirable and would need to be factored in to any cost analysis. Remember that when these properties were built, families did not usually own more than one car, if that. Nowadays, however, many have 2 or even 3 cars. So providing additional parking/garaging space is, in our opinion, a priority to seriously consider.

One way of seeing whether an investment deal stacks up is to consider how much it would rent for. If we assume that the property is in “tip-top” condition, with additional parking etc…., we would expect it to rent for around £1200pcm (and may be a bit more) in the current market.

Now assume that the property achieves a sensible gross yield of say 4.5% to 5%. Based on the achievable rent and yield figures, we can now calculate how much the property should be worth. If you like, this is a “reverse yield” calculation, where we know the likely achievable rent and a sensible range of yields for the property type.

So, based on a 4.5% to 5% gross rental yield and a rent of £1200pcm, the value of this property in “tip-top” condition would be expected to be somewhere in the region of £288000 to £320000.

Does this range of calculated values for the property look sensible, or is it wide of the mark?

Well, looking at the Rightmove comparables there is in fact another property in Crabbet Road which was marketed at “Offers in Excess of £330000” by agents Mansell McTaggart. This property is now under offer – here’s the link https://www.rightmove.co.uk/rmplus/property/showPropertyMcr.action?propertyId=50464786. The Mansell McTaggart property, however, has a large garden & has been extended to give additional downstairs space and 3/4 bedrooms. However, like the property we’re considering, it also needs modernisation.  In our opinion, our calculated price range does seem to fit reasonably well with that of the slightly larger property advertised by Mansells.

Now for the final bit…. at last!

Let’s assume that the property we’re considering is now in tip-top condition and worth about £290000 i.e. towards the lower end of our calculated value range. If we bought the property for £260000, we would have in theory £30000 to play with in order to do the renovation work. If we spent any more than this, we may well be overspending and putting more money in to the property than it is worth. Of course, if the property once renovated were worth £300000, we would effectively have £40000 to invest in the renovation works, before we started to overspend.

Having completed our calculations and looked at the comparables for both sale and rent, the property appears to stack-up as a potential investment…. at least on paper.  If we were interested in going further with this property, we would now need to view it and see just how much money was needed to be spent, in order to bring it up to “tip-top” order.  For this we may also need to take trades people along to provide quotes for the work required.

If you’re looking for a renovation project, or want a second opinion on one that you have your eye on already, why not give us a call on 01293 515588 for a chat. Our advice is free. Alternatively, just drop us an e-mail to crawley@northwooduk.com.

16th October 2015

2 bed apartment, Three Bridges, Crawley

Another flat in Commonwealth Drive, Three Bridges, Crawley has just come up for sale. Marketed by Cubitt & West at £220000, this property is £5000 cheaper than a similar apartment we featured a days ago. Apparently there’s an open day tomorrow (17th October) …..so if you’re interested, you’d better get your skates on and give Cubitt’s a call. Here’s their number 01293 263037 ! For more information about the property check out the details on Rightmove at http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-36990450.html

Commonwealth DrLike the property featured recently, rents have been pushing upwards and we’re starting to see these flats let for between £1025 to £1100pcm. Based on the quoted asking price of £220000, this would give a gross yield ranging from 5.6% to 6%. These yield figures are pretty good and we’ve certainly seen them creeping up over the last few months, as demand outstrips supply. You may well see things ease off a bit, however, towards Christmas and further into Jan 2016. Makes you shiver just thinking about it !

If you’d like some advice about property investment in Crawley, then do please get in touch with us. Our advice is free and we’d be more than happy to have a chat with you about our favourite subject ! Whether you’re an experienced landlord or completely new to buy-to-let, give us a call on 01293 515588 or e-mail us on crawley@northwooduk.com

13th October 2015

2 Bedroom Flat, Pembroke Pk, Three Bridges, Crawley

This 2 bedroom flat has just come on to the market today with estate agents, Mansell McTaggart. With a guide price range of £225000 to £235000, the property includes a balcony & allocated underground parking. Here’s the Rightmove link for further details http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-55362476.html

Pembroke Pk13-10-15There are two key aspects to this property that should appeal to potential investors. Firstly, there is an en-suite shower to the main bedroom & a shower over the bath in the family bathroom. Secondly, both bedrooms are doubles. The apartment should therefore appeal to both couples and sharers alike, which is certainly an investor plus point in helping to reduce void periods between lets.

Properties like this rent for £1000pcm to £1050pcm in the current market. Assuming you were to buy at the bottom end of the guide price range, you’d expect a gross yield of between 5.3% to 5.6%. Not too bad at all !

If you’re new to buy-to-let investments or are an experienced landlord contemplating adding to your existing portfolio, why not give a call on 01293 515588 for a chat. Alternatively, you can send us an e-mail to crawley@northwooduk.com.

8th October 2015

3 Bed Semi, Three Bridges, Crawley 

This property has just popped up today in St Richard’s Mews, Broomdashers Road, Three Bridges, Crawley. On the market with King & Chasemore for offers in the region of £290 000, the property was previously marketed for £299 950 from April this year. The drop in price is probably an indication that the vendors are motivated and would really like to sell in the current “selling season”. For more details here’s the Rightmove link: http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-54703412.html

Broomdashers 8-10-15As an investment, this property would appeal to a family with children. In our opinion it is has a number of things going for it. These include: 2 allocated parking spaces and proximity to local schools, the town centre & Three Bridges station for fast trains to London – good for commuters. Decoratively, at least from the pictures, it also appears to be in good condition.

The other feature we like about this property is that it is Halls Adjoining with next door. So, if the next door neighbours are overly sensitive to noise from TV’s etc….. the doors to the lounge/diner can be closed providing a sound barrier. Less hassle for tenants, neighbours & landlords alike !

Looking at houses in the area from a rental perspective, this type of property should achieve between £1200pcm & £1250pcm (and may be more). Based on these rental figures and assuming you could secure the property for £290 000, you would expect to get a gross yield of between around 4.9% to 5.2%. Of course, as an investor with (presumably) no dependent sale, you might be in a strong position to negotiate the price even lower, particularly if you are willing to do the deal quickly !

If you’re an experienced landlord looking for new property investments, or perhaps you’re new to “Buy-to-Let” and would like some advice, why not call us on 01293 515588 for a chat about  the different options Crawley has to offer. You can also e-mail us on crawley@northwooduk.com

14th September 2015

2 bedroom flat, Three Bridges, Crawley

Here’s a nice looking apartment in the ever popular Pembroke Park development in Three Bridges, Crawley. Marketed by Inspire Estate Agents at £220 000, we would guess that it will probably not be around for very long before an offer is accepted. Here’s the Rightmove link if you’re interested in taking a look at some further details http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-36392469.html.

cutThe property has an en-suite to the master bedroom and a family bathroom with a shower over the bath. So from an investment point of view it scores well in terms of great location with access to Three Bridges Station and will appeal to couples & sharers alike – with two separate showers. Together with gas central heating, underground parking and a balcony we think it has plenty of investment potential.

So, down to the nuts & bolts……what about the yield ! ?

Properties like this are currently renting in Crawley for anything between £995 pcm & £1050 pcm. Based on the asking price this gives a gross annual yield of 5.4% to 5.7%. So not too bad at all.

If you’re interested in property investment in Crawley & the surrounding towns, or perhaps have your eye on a particular property, why not give us call or e-mail for some independent and free advice ? Call us on 01293 515588 or e-mail: crawley@northwooduk.com.

17th August 2015

2 bedroom flat, Three Bridges, Crawley

Here’s a two bedroom flat in Crawley’s ever popular Pembroke Park development in Three Bridges. Although a little further from the main line train station than Trafalgar gardens, for example, the development is nonetheless only about a 10 minute walk away. Marketed by Moore & Partners, this particular property has the advantage of an allocated covered parking space.

For a closer look at the details, here’s the Rightmove link: http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-52491122.html

Pembroke ParkAlthough the property is one of the smaller examples in the Pembroke Park development, it benefits from an ensuite to the master bedroom and a family bathroom with a shower. Hence, the flat is ideal for couples and professional sharers alike.

Current rental figures for these flats are between £950 & £995 pcm, giving a respectable maximum gross annual yield of between 5.4% to 5.7%. Well worth a look in our opinion.

If you’re looking for property investments in and around Crawley, don’t hesitate to ask us for advice on what to buy and, more importantly, what not to buy ! Our advice is free, so give us a call on 01293 515588 or e-mail crawley@northwooduk.com.