Rowan Court in Spennymoor can bring a reasonable return for the investor

Obviously there aren't many peoperties coming to market at the present time, but this one caught the eye

ROWAN COURT, SPENNYMOOR, SPENNYMOOR DISTRICT

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-49695116.html

It's a 3 bedroom semi-detached house in Rowan Court and the asking price is Offers In The Region Of £106,995. I've spoken many times about portal pricing and ensuring that the marketing gives the property it's best chance. This would be at £100,000 or £110,000 and NOT at an odd price point such as £106,995.

Add to this, the photography could have been carried out in better light. But if you can look past this you may find a good property.

It looks well-maintained and from the photos and description of the property doesn't appear to require a lot of work. For landlords this is a plus. I'd expect a monthly rental of between £525 and £600. This relates to a gross annual return of between 5.8% and 6.7%, based on the asking price. This is a reasonable rental return and the fact that the property is 3 bedrooms will probably make it more attractive than the 2 bedroom properties currently available for rent.

It's worth a look for the investor.

Tees Crescent, Spennymoor is worth a look for investors

There are still the odd property or two appearing on Rightmove in Spennymoor this week. Such as the following-

TEES CRESCENT, Spennymoor, DL16

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-47635273.html

It's a 3 bed semi detached house on Tees Crescent with an asking price of £69,950.

The marketing photographs show a colourful decor, which makes a change from the magnolia walks we often see, especially with new houses. It's from the new Spennymoor agent called Harringtons, and it's the second of their properties I've featured in this blog.

Harringtons have featured a comprehensive, if unexciting description of the property together and there are quite a few marketing photos to help you get a feel of how the property is.

I've not visited the property, but it appears to be in a decent condition and from the marketing description and photos there doesn't appear to be a great deal of expense needed to ensure the property is ready to rent out.

There is usually a slightly stronger rental demand as we go up from 2 bedroom properties to 3 bedroom properties and I think this would attract rental demand at the right price. I would expect a rental return of between £450 and £525 per month which, based on the asking price, would give a gross annual return of between 7.7% and 9%. These are good rental return figures against the long-held norm for residential property of 6%.

It's worth a look for investors.

An unusual property will bring much attention

It's close to Christmas, but houses are still appearing on Rightmove this week. The following 2 bedroom house has come to the market via Robinsons -

Studley Drive, Spennymoor, County Durham

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-49630004.html

It's got an asking price of £87,950 (the lack of knowledge about portal pricing shows through again, unfortunately.)

It's modern, still under NHBC guarantee and looks clean, modern and well laid out in the photos. There are 8 photos, but 2 are of the bathroom and one of the hall, so quite a let down there. It's also obvious that the light conditions weren't great when the photo was taken, which is a real shame as natural light helps to sell a property.

This aside, it should attract interest from owner occupies and some landlords. I would suggest a rental return of between £450 and £475, which means a gross annual return of between 6.1% and 6.5% based on the asking price.

It's a good property that's under a guarantee and looks well-maintained from the photos. It will attract attention, if not quite at this price.

Check out my ebook on how to sell your home-

What Traditional Estate Agents don't tell you: A guide to getting the most out of selling your home by Steven Thompson http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00I5HOJAM/ref=cm_sw_r_udp_awd_L-VKub0NF763Q

Fern Grove in Spennymoor would give a decent rental return

One property that has come to market in Spennymoor over the lady week is this 2 bedroom house on Fern Grove, which has gone on the market for £72,500-

Fern Grove, Spennymoor, Durham

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-49518983.html

You'll have to forgive the estate agent for going over-the-top in their description of this one. Look at the following sentence from the description-

"Conveniently located for local schools and bus routes the property in our opinion would suit a variety of purchasers including the first time buyer and this lovely home must be viewed to be appreciated."

And that's all one sentence!

Putting this aside, it's in a good location, close to South View, and the bus route. The property has been refurbished in the standard manner of low-cost fitted kitchen and magnolia walls.  This will probably bode well as the current owner will most likely have put right any potential traits as part of the refurbishment.

I know that many landlords would rather do the renovation work themselves than pay a premium for someone else to carry it out, but there's still some mileage left in this property.

I'd expect a rental return of between £425 and £450 per month for this property.  This would bring a gross annual return of between 7% and 7.4%, based on the asking price. This is reasonable, compared to the standard accepted return of 6%.

Go and have a look!

Is there a business reason for a quiet estate agency Christmas!

Only one property has appeared on Rightmove so far this week, and it's a new build-

Whitworth Road, Spennymoor, DL16 7LN

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/new-homes-for-sale/property-49484003.html

This fact has for me thinking whether there is a business reason for property not entering the market at this time of year. I understand that people will have a focus elsewhere and that photos of the property may look dated if they contain Christmas decorations but I'm interested to see where the demand is.

Traditionally people who get a new tablet, smartphone or laptop for Christmas will have a good browse over the Christmas period and this includes looking at their local area on Rightmove. The below article from the Rightmove blog in 2013 states that their 10 busiest days are in January-

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/news/articles/rightmove-news/homemovers-spring-into-action-as-rightmove-records-busiest-january-ever

This adds up, into view, to a business case FOR putting your home on the market, not a case AGAINST it. Your home will probably look cosy, festive and inviting for the Christmas period, so why not make the most of the effort you put in? It's up to the estate agent to revisit when the decorations are down and take fresh photographs.

I've known of estate agents that will put the property on the market in late December and market the property "quietly" with an agreement with the vendors that viewings won't start until a certain date after the festivities. This builds up the interest in the property and the agent can pre-book the viewings. The vendor (and some buyers) can feel a sudden rush of interest when viewings are allowed. It's a good tool for estate agents and one I'd like to see the estate agents of Spennymoor try - it will allow Spennymoor sellers to experience some of the January rush.

A little renovation work for Spennymoor investors

There's a fee new properties appeared on Rightmove over the last week, which is unusual for this time of the year. One that caught my eye for investors is this one on Thorn Close-

THORN CLOSE, MIDDLESTONE MOOR, SPENNYMOOR DISTRICT

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-29708559.html

It's a 2 bed terrace on the market for £39,950. Although I disagree wholeheartedly with pricing strategies like this (whole numbers work perfectly with property portals - go for £40,000) the property is appealing at this price.

From the property description and the internal photos, it looks as though the property needs some freshening up, but on first internet inspection it looks like it's not major structural works.

These 2 bedroom terraced houses always have a reasonable rental demand. I think it would rent for between £350 and £400 per month. Based on the asking price, this would bring in a gross rental yield of between 10.5% and 12%, which is a good rental return for any investor.

Taking into account the potential of renovation, and the time this takes then there is a buffer in potential return to absorb this.

Have a look!

A property on Rightmove from Spennymoor's newest agent

A new property from Spennymoor's newest agent has come onto the market this week. It's a 3 bedroom house on Durham Road-

DURHAM ROAD, Spennymoor, DL16
http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-47461492.html

It's on the market for £119,950. The average sold price for properties on Durham Road is £72,996, according to nethouseprices -

http://m.nethouseprices.com/soldprices/property_results?street=DURHAM+ROAD&town=SPENNYMOOR&outcode=DL16

The description put on Rightmove by Harringtons is hugely wordy and it can be difficult to sort the wheat from the chaff. The photograph of the front of the property is something I've never seen before - it includes the front of 7 properties!

Durham Road is popular for buyers and renters, so if the figures stack up them there's potential for a landlord. It looks in a really good condition from the photos, so hopefully there's no work that needs doing.

I wpuld expect a rental return of £500 per month for this property, so based on the asking price this wpuld generate a gross rental return of 5%. This is a little lower than the standard expected return of 8% but is obviously higher than you'd get in a bank account.

There will probably be some competition from people looking to buy the property to live in so investors will probably need to look at the property soon and make their mind up.

This close to Tudhoe Village will attract owners as well as investors

There's only one new property in Spennymoor listed on Rightmove since Saturday, and since Robinsons have listed it without photos, floor plans or EPC's I don't think it's worthy of further discussion.

This property, however has appeared in the last week- 

1, St Charles Road, Spennymoor

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-49295402.html

It is a 2 bed cottage listed at £79,950 with Peter Clark of Ferryhill. Since this is a blog in the Spennymoor property market and not a blog on Spennymoor estate agents, I don't mind including a property from an agent out of town!

Despite their use of the over-used, seldom-understood words "rarely available," the agent has given a reasonable description of the property, even if the photos are insufficient and of poor quality. The location near to Tudhoe Village is a selling point and will ensure that the property appeals to owner-occupies as well as investors.

The accuracy of the pricing will be determined by the market, but the lack of photos may stifle the interest a little.

I'd expect this to gain a rental of between £395 to £425 per month. Based on the asking price, this would bring in a gross annual rental return of between 5.9% and 6.3%. This is an average rental yield, but without seeing further into the property, it's difficult to tell whether £79,950 is a reasonable price and whether there is any more work needed.