It is always interesting ( for those of us with an interest in property ) to look at the recent purchase prices of properties to see where the bargains were and what would have been a good buy for an investor.
These purchase prices not the advertised prices are not released by the land registry for a few months after the sale goes through, but there are always some that are worth picking out and below are a few that stood out with this months release of data.
No.55 Churchfield Road in Houghton Regis sold for £129,995 in May 2014. This is a 2 bed terraced house and Churchfield Road does have a steady turnover of property.
If this house was placed on the rental market now you could expect to achieve a rental value of £675-£700pcm which would give you a rental yield of between 6% & 6.5%. With no Service charges associated with buying an apartment and 2 bed houses by far the most popular properties at the moment this could have been a good investment property for someone.
Another 2 bed terraced house purchased in May 2014 and located just off Churchfield Road was No. 11 Thornview Road. This house was bought for £135,000 and again would rent for around £675 to £700pcm giving a rental yield of around 6%
Now what of the apartments that sold at around the same time? These can also produce better rental yields, but you do have to factor in service charges etc.
First lets look at one that we actually rented for one of our landlords in The Mall, Dunstable. It was a 2 bed ground floor flat in the Earls Court block. These apartments are well proportioned and rent quite easily, but some blocks are better maintained than others.
The Land Registry data shows that the apartment our landlord bought was purchased for £108,000. We rented it very easily to a young couple for £600pcm giving the landlord a rental yield of over 6.5%.
Next we can look at 3 apartments bought to the North of Dunstable in Peppercorn Way and French’s Avenue. These are relatively modern apartments and even though they are on the outskirts of Dunstable as soon as one goes on the market we will have a number of enquiries.
No.18 Peppercorn Way is a 1 bedroom apartment. It sold for £102,000 and would rent for £575-£595pcm giving a rental yield of between 6.5% and 7%.
No.60 Peppercorn Way which is a 2 bedroom apartment sold for £119,000 and would rent for £675-£695pcm also giving a rental yield of between 6.5% and 7%.
The 1 bedroom apartment purchased in Frenchs Avenue would return a better yield having been purchased for £97,000 and a rental value of £575-£595pcm you would be receiving a rental yield of over 7%
Now have you ever been tempted to purchase a property at auction ? In June this year No.46 Winfield Street was bought at auction for £90,000. It is a 2 bed apartment with parking in Dunstable. It has 121 years left on the lease and a ground rent of £150 per annum. There is already a tenant in place who is paying £625pcm which is a fairly modest rent for a 2 bedroom apartment in Dunstable, but this would still equate to a rental yield of over 8%
As we all keep an eye on the Bank of England waiting for a fraction of a percent interest rise these investment returns show why so many are becoming Buy-to-Let investors and investing in property not only for the rental yield but also the capital yield on their investments.
