DUDE… WHERE’S MY DEAL??!?

Six weeks into the year, and my next property deal still eludes me. I have viewed lots of houses, put in many offers, but alas, no deal as yet. It’s not just any old single let I’m looking for, because if that was the case, there’s hundreds of them locally - but they’re all too dear and all too nice. Where are all the unloved and ropey dumps? Where’s my next grimy little grotbox?

There is a real shortage of ‘my type’ of housing stock just now, meaning people are paying too much for them. Put your purse away love, it’s not even worth that!

Frustration and impatience is kicking in - but do we lower our standards and change our criteria? NO, we do not! We wait, stealthily, like a panther ready to pounce, for when the “right deal” appears. We are a master of hard-core discipline, patience and self-control. We know that our delightful little 2-3 bedroomed scuzzy grotbox, the brick-built house, with no flat roof, with garden for the kiddies, is just around the corner ready to be transformed into a lovely family haven - and so we shall wait it out… knowing the payoff will be worthwhile. Meanwhile, for those like me who are having to sit on their hands… TOP TIPS FOR THOSE SUFFERING WITH  “DUDE, WHERE’S MY DEAL?!?” FEVER 1. I feel your frustration, knowing you’ve got targets you want to hit. Me too. But if in doubt, wait it out! 2. Have your own criteria of what constitutes a ‘deal’ to you as a professional property investor, and do not lower your standards. If it’s not a deal, then you’re just buying a house like Mr & Mrs Normal First-Time-Buyer! 3. Keep yourself detached, and don’t get emotional over any one particular property. I too have been guilty of this (“Aww, I used to live on this street”) but it’s only a house, and unless you’re a brick-licking objectophile, then just walk away, Renée! There’s plenty more fish in the sea and bricks in the town! 4. Keep viewing houses and making offers. It’s just the Law of Averages. I got six offers bounced last week, but I’ll keep smiling about the ‘NO’s, knowing I’m getting nearer to the ‘YES’! 5. Put your bounced offers in a ‘pipeline’ file. Ring and check progress every week, because don’t forget, 1 in 3 house sales in the UK falls through. One of my favourite phone calls goes like this: “Hello Mr Lovely Estate Agent, how are you getting on with 666 Cantsellit Street? Well let them know my offer still stands if they change their mind!” And this is repeated weekly, forever, until either it sells (i.e. the purchase exchanges), they accept my offer, or I die. NB – this really works: for one of my houses, I happened to ring on the very morning a pre-agreed sale had just fallen through - and then I was in there like swimwear!   So keep your chin up, keep smiling, and remember what Mr T says: Find me at these social media platforms! Click here: Thanks for reading! If you'd like to know more about investing in property, please visit my website at https://kellyannmartin.co.uk/ Best wishes, and take care, Kellyann x x x