The Property Voice Podcast - Series 1: Episode 5
Since we started this series we have looked up towards our purpose and goals and then closer to us in terms of setting our criteria and researching in our property investing.
Today we are going to look out wide a bit more by considering: Who you know, what you know & where to go to find them! Today is all about expanding our property investing knowledge and how to get it.
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Resources mentioned
- Property Investor Toolkit – here is the book link on co.uk & amazon.com in case you would like to get yourself a copy to accompany this series
- Property forums & communities
- Forums: Property Tribes, Property 118, The Property Hub
- Social media groups & pages (e.g. Facebook, Linked In, Google+)
- Online networks (subscription): PIN Academy, Progressive Property
- Offline networks: PIN meetings, PPN meetings
- Event listings (Incl. meetings mentioned above): Just Do Property, My Property Power Team, Your Property Networ
- Industry bodies
- Landlords: NLA, RLA
- Lettings: ARLA
- Ombudsmen: The Property Ombudsman, Property Redress Scheme, Ombudsman Services
- Finance: FCA, CML, NACFB
- News channels
- National press (on/offline – The Telegraph and This Is Money are particularly good)
- Social media groups & pages (e.g. Twitter, Facebook, Linked In, Google+)
- Industry press (sales, lettings, finance)
- News feeds / portals: RSS, Scoop.it, Blogs
- Newsletters: Email opt-ins at popular blogs and websites
- Magazines: Property Investor News, Your Property Network, Buy to let magazine
- New media: Podcasts, Youtube, Webinars
- My top 5 essential property books…here is the blog post on Property Tribes & The Property Voice
- Reading Challenge - here is the update for March, May will be published soon...
- Shout Out – LHA Direct is a great resource to see not only housing benefit rates in an area but also the general rental picture for both single lets and room rates...pretty cool to use for research purposes
Today’s must do’s
- Develop your knowledge & build your network:
- Join in with some of the property investment community - networks & groups
- Join me and set yourself a reading challenge - don't forget to commit it in writing...drop a comment onto the blog
- Consider getting yourself an 'accountability partner' to encourage, support & challenge you on your investment journey...a property buddy, mastermind group or mentor
- Subscribe, rate & review the show in iTunes…and while you are at it please help us to spread the word by telling all your friends too!
- Send in your property stories, questions or moans to podcast@thepropertyvoice.net and we will try and feature YOU on the show too!
- If you would like to, grab yourself a copy of the book: Property Investor Toolkit (link in Resources above)
Get talking!
- Join in the discussion, either here in the comments section below, or anywhere else on the Blog
- Start a conversation on Twitter with us @PropertyVoiceUK or on our Facebook page
Transcription of the show
Hello and welcome to another edition of The Property Voice Podcast, my name is Richard Brown and as always it is a pleasure to have you join us. I am happy to say us again as look who is here…yes, it’s Casa! Hey Casa, how are you and how have you been?
Casa: Hi Richard, it feels good to be back thank you for asking. I had a week off and then I think you were away fighting crocodiles in the jungle or something like that I believe.
Casa: In order to make up for lost time; let me tell the listeners what they can expect on today’s show. Today’s Property Chatter is all about power…well it’s about knowledge and of course we know that with knowledge comes power. Then in Your Voice we can share another fantastic listener review and a listener answer to our ‘One Thing’ question posted on social media this week too. Finally, as always we have a great resource for you in the Shout Out. But enough of me; I will hand back to you Richard for this week’s Property Chatter.
Property Chatter
Today’s topic is: Knowledge…who, what & where…
Thank you Casa for setting up the show so nicely, I have missed you. Crocodiles and piranhas yes, I was chasing them around the Amazon last time out but I made it back in one piece, well minus the odd drop of blood due to a couple of insect bites but that story is for another day!
On with today’s topic then….which is all about Knowledge. Not the London Taxi variety but the: who, what and where variety in property instead.
They say, it’s not what you know but who you know that counts and similarly knowledge can set you free. So, let’s try and combine these two apparently opposite perspectives to understand how we can make progress in our property investing journey.
This topic is aligned to Section 4 in my book: Property Investor Toolkit if you are following along. This section in the book has literally over a hundred links to external resources to go to…so much so that it is a giant Shout Out section in its own right! I won’t attempt to repeat all of that content here therefore and instead wish to highlight the merits of staying informed and why enlisting the support of others can be so helpful to us.
So, our topic today lends itself to be broken it down into two clear sections: people and knowledge. However, as we progress, we will see that they are in fact linked together.
Starting with people then…
Anyone that has invested in property for a while can tell you that it can be a bit lonely at times, unless you happen to be the well-known HMO Landlady, Serena Thompson, or at least someone that operates like she does by being very active and hands on with her tenants. So, apart from anything else, there is the human need for contact, companionship and shared interest.
If you have ever tried talking to your mates or your parents about property investing, many will have pre-set ideas and opinions. Some can be well-informed, whereas others and I would say the large majority might not be. The acid test here is whether they are themselves experienced investors or not. If they are, then you are in luck as that is the first property network you can join!
Now, I just mentioned a phrase – property network – and this gives us a clue as to why and how associating with other property investors can be of benefit. So, what are the main benefits of joining in with a property community and hanging out with other property investors?
Here are some potential benefits:
- Friendship & companionship as I mentioned
- Mutual support and encouragement
- Sharing of ideas, getting answers and giving something back
- Access to subject matter experts, professionals and other service providers
- Seeing role models to gain confidence & inspiration
- Access to tips & tricks and also the pitfalls and lessons learnt
- Keeping up to date with the latest trends and strategies
- Finding buddies, mastermind groups or coaches and mentors to support your journey
These are just some of the reasons why joining a property community can help us.
A network is a meeting place, a community or a hub. It’s like the Forum from ancient Rome, the market day from old Britain or the online social networks that dominate ours and our families lives and attention these days. It is a place to meet, to exchange ideas, ask questions and find answers and also to do business with like-minded individuals. Well, when I say like-minded, that might not always be the case but with similar interests and objectives at least.
So, the second network that I would encourage you to seek out, after any close family and friends experienced in property investing, are the property investor networks. I should really say networks however, as there are plenty to choose from. There are both virtual and real life property networks, some loosely organised and some professionally managed. So, let’s take a whistle stop tour and discover a little more…
You will find plenty of property investors in groups on Facebook, Linked In & Google+, as examples of social networks where groups of us can be found. I notice that some of these groups now number in the tens of thousands but size is not everything when it comes to networks. Choose where you hang out wisely I would say, have a good look around any community and identify it’s culture or way of working before diving in too deep…there are some clear differences and some will suit some more than others for sure! I will provide some links to some of the major social network communities that I hang around in the show notes so you can check a few of these out for yourself.
Aside from networks that harness the big social machines of Facebook and the like, there are also some networks that have set up their own communities with dedicated forums. The 3 that I can be found around are Property Tribes, The Property Hub and to a lesser extent Property 118. The idea of a forum is broad but as it is a more dedicated platform or system than say Facebook or Linked In, it often has an easier way of searching and navigating among all the different posts and articles to make it easier to use as well. Some require a membership commitment of some sort but that is usually only an email address to sign up.
Then the next major category of network are the real life, physical ones – live property meetings and events where we will find our lesser-spotted brethren. Meetings are run all over the country every month and provide an opportunity to hear a guest speaker and also rub shoulders with other property investors before and afterwards. Now, I realise that I have probably freaked out a good number of you, especially the more introverted types, at the suggestion of going out to a property meeting and risking someone thrusting a hand or worse a business card in your direction but I say it is definitely worth it…at least in the early stages to put ourselves out there. Just one piece of advice…leave your credit card at home J
I will link to some of my favourite networks in the show notes, so makes sure you head over to www.thepropertyvoice.net/podcast and check them out.
After looking at people, let’s now take a look at sources of knowledge in property…
As with the people and networking side of this episode, there are some distinct advantages in getting up to speed with this business we are in. Now, I intend to talk more about formal property education in a later episode, so today I shall only mention it in passing. Here are some of the benefits of upgrading our property knowledge:
- It makes us more professional
- It opens our eyes to all sorts possibilities & opportunities not just buy-to-let
- It helps to reduce our risk by increasing our awareness
- It accelerates our growth & progress
- It introduces us to alternative ways of looking at things
- It helps with problem-solving and avoiding mistakes
- And…it’s just fun!
OK, so where to go…
Landlord’s associations – there are two main landlord associations; the National Landlord’s Association, or NLA & the residential landlord’s association, or RLA
Both of these offer plenty of information, training and events and an accreditation scheme. As you will hear later when we talk in more detail about lettings, I am an advocate of getting accredited, especially if not using a letting agent. Even if we are using an agent, it makes sense to get accredited as there are lots of responsibilities that go with being a landlord these days.
There are other industry associations and bodies that can offer useful information to us, which I will link to in the show notes. However, I would also like to direct you to the different property redress schemes and in particular to The Property Ombudsman for extra information, particularly in dealing with agents and companies in the sales and lettings arena.
Other sources of knowledge and information are:
The national press, who have a dedicated property section – I particularly recommend The Telegraph and This is Money for their excellent property sections
Online industry press, such as Property Reporter & Property Industry Eye
Property magazines, such as Your Property Network and one or two others
Of course, I cannot leave this section without mentioning The Property Voice blog and news feed either, but I am sure you already subscribe tour mailing list to stay up to date don’t you?
We are increasingly a part of the digital age and therefore podcasts or video channels are also becoming increasingly more popular; so make sure you have a browse around iTunes & YouTube as a minimum to find other great, free resources under this area of ‘new media’.
I really should make mention of books before I close…
If you have followed me for any length of time, then you may know that in addition to writing a book myself, I really like a good read, particularly in property or personal development. I have had my highs and lows however but I have a solution to present to you if you share this up and down or lack of commitment to reading too.
I would strongly advocate reading, particularly on the subject of property. I have written a blog about my top 5 books based on a request from Property Tribes and have a Reading Challenge going on the blog as well, so there is no hiding place having gone public with my 2 books per month goal. Fortunately, and in particular thanks in particular to Audible, I am well ahead of target so far this year. But I want you to keep in mind what I did there…I had a written goal and went public with it…I will return to that in a minute!
So, if I were to suggest a short book list now to kick you off, it would be as follows:
"Rich Dad, Poor Dad" – taught me the value of assets and passive income
"The Richest Man in Babylon" – simply explains the keys to long-term wealth creation
"Man’s Search For Meaning" – if you don’t have a clear purpose then you have nothing…and be grateful for what you do have!
"The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People" – personal development and growth in yourself is perhaps the greatest investment of all
"How to Get Rich, Not Quick" – we need a plan to save money to invest and this little known and low cost book does exactly that.
Oh…and there is a decent looking book called Property Investor Toolkit: A 7-Part Toolkit for Property Investment Success that a nice chap has pulled together that you might like to consider too J
In that book, there are several reading lists running to over a hundred books if you so desire…
And that brings me onto something I said earlier – going public. As I mentioned, I set myself a book reading challenge this year to read at least 2 books per month and so far I am well ahead of target. I can attribute a large part of that achievement to going public with my goal and committing to report on my progress every month.
My challenge to you is to join me…it doesn’t have to be the same goal but set yourself a goal and commit to it in writing by dropping a comment in the blog post of one of my book challenge blog updates over at www.thepropertyvoice.net – let’s do this together and keep each other motivated shall we?
Just imagine, if you set the same goal as me, then in a year you will have read 24 books and after just 4 years you could have read every book in my extended reading list and pretty much more than the average university student in the process. Now that’s food for thought…
I want to warp up this section by returning to something I have been hinting at, or touching on, without making it explicit. The idea of support and accountability in our property investing and knowledge acquisition in particular.
I will return to this concept in a later episode, however today’s subject is so close to the issue that I feel I should at least mention it now.
If we have someone we can work alongside, we stand a better chance of staying motivated and staying the course. We can also be challenged by the right people around us and by challenging ourselves we get to stretch and grow.
Therefore, I would like to finish by saying, why not consider getting yourself some kind of accountability partner or group? It might be a property buddy, a property, business or personal development mastermind group or a property coach or mentor. Just think about how much more you could learn or how much further you can push yourself by choosing to hold yourself accountable to other people…it’s pretty powerful stuff you know. Choose wisely however.
For now, I will merely leave you with that seed germ of an idea and let it take root before I return to it in a couple of episodes or so…
So, in conclusion – we can and arguably should get out there, either virtually or in reality to meet other investors, we can immerse ourselves in a variety of ways to develop our knowledge and perhaps set ourselves that reading challenge. Finally, if we really want to grow start thinking about teaming up in some way with a buddy, mastermind group or mentor…you won’t know unless you try now will you…
Your Voice
Casa: We have another 5 star listener review to share now Richard, here goes.
Here is a 5-star review from GYoooou, who says
“There are quite a few property podcasts around at the moment but this one still stands out from the crowd. It’s very well produced, easy to listen to and packed with information. The computer assistant ‘Cazza’ [that’s me] makes it very original too. I’m so pleased that I have another very enjoyable source of property info!”
Thank you so much for that kind review GYoooou; I am blushing with the praise. If you would like to leave us a review, then please try and do that sometime as it will help us to get noticed. I did see that someone gave a 1 star rating, so if you think we deserve 5 stars like Mogsiemorris last week and Gyoooou this week, then have your say is all I can ask.
Next up, Your Voice this week is in the form of a listener, who responded to our simple question posed on our social media channels. It comes from Nick Thorpe, a property investor located in Huddersfield…that’s up north in case you didn’t know!
Richard has just finished reading the book: The One Thing and so he asked…What is the one thing you know now that you wished you knew when you started investing in property?
Here is what Nick had to say:
‘I wish I'd of known the importance of having a reason 'Why' bigger than myself and beyond finance. When times are busy and priorities are muddled that is what now drives me through.’
Wow, what a great piece of advice and if you recall, we talked about having a clear purpose or reason why in an earlier episode didn’t we? I like the distinction that it might not always be financial very much here. By the way Nick, we think you are amazing, magnificent and modest, even if that only makes sense between us right now!
It is fantastic to get these listener contributions – it helps to make the show real for you, so please do share your funny stories, moans or property questions either by emailing the show at podcast@thepropertyvoice.net or use SpeakPipe if you want to get your voice on the radio instead!
That’s the Your Voice for this week then…have a reason why to keep you going.
Shout Out
After possibly giving you a reason to idle away some time playing a game last week – even if it is an educational one – this week let’s share something down right practical instead shall we?
The resource that I am giving today’s Shout Out to is LHA-Direct
LHA-Direct is a handy portal that allows you to check the local housing allowance for a specific area and house size by bedroom. It is essential to know what this is if the intention is to rent to tenants claiming benefits obviously, as that’s the maximum allowance they would receive from the Government. Of course they could top up the rent themselves, although that probably seems unlikely.
Now, you might be thinking something like ‘but I don’t rent to benefits tenants Richard’ but that’s not all it could be used for…
By knowing the LHA rate, we effectively know what a sort of worst case scenario is with our rent calculations, which if you remember I tend to recommend running the numbers on a best, worst and expected case basis. So it can assist with that.
The other thing is that the LHA rate is calculated as being the 30th percentile of the average rents in the area for equivalent properties. Now I am no mathematical genius and so I cannot tell you how to convert the rent into the true average, or even the maximum level. However, fortunately, I don’t need to know that either, as there is a handy graph of the spread of rents in that local area on the site too! Now, that is useful to know isn’t it…now we really can make some judgements about best and worst case scenarios and if like to do a bit of research into your investments I am sure you will find this a useful little tool to refer to.
One final point on the LHA-Direct link…it also shows the room rates and not just the full property rates, so helpful if you are looking at HMOs as well J
OK, another week is in the can, I hope that you enjoyed the show. If I could leave you with one idea to consider over this next week, aside from networking and reading challenges…it would be this: think of how you can get involved in the show, we would love to hear from you in whichever way suits you best.
The show notes will be on our website with all the links and references included, so check them out and just say hi!
Until next time on The Property Voice Podcast…ciao-ciao