Planning to sell - prep as a home or investment

Averagevegan

I will hopefully sell my PPR in summer of 2019. To be honest I never liked the house so I don't want to get trapped here either by age or a dip in the market.

I'm not sure if I should prep it as a home or an investment property.

investors are buying properties with a yield of 6% but would I get more if someone bought it as a home?

It's an own door 2 bed house (no garden) nearly all the other houses are rented to student tenants but the area is nice.

April 73

How would you prep it differently? What would you do to it to sell it as a home versus an investment?

Averagevegan

April 73 wrote: »

How would you prep it differently? What would you do to it to sell it as a home versus an investment?

For an investment, I'd be painting it top to bottom white, no carpets, everything hard wearing!
Basic, clean, functional and ready to let day one.

If it's a home, I'd be working on the curb appeal e.g. nicer colour scheme, consistent details through out, some nicer lights, rugs, better storage, potted plants etc

thereality

Averagevegan wrote: »

For an investment, I'd be painting it top to bottom white, no carpets, everything hard wearing!
Basic, clean, functional and ready to let day one.

I would agree with you on this, if it was 1995...

You get a lot more for a rental, that is dressed up and nice, than generic and boring 'student house' ie white walls and hard wearing. Most landlords avoid white walls, as they are impossible to keep clean

Most landlords are amateurs. They will likely want to buy something, that they too would live in. Look at all the landlords who buy plush apartments in the IFSC/Grand Canal Dock with yields of 5/6%, when you can buy homes in a ****ty parts of Dublin with yields of around 12-13%. It is the same city affected by the same macro-economic issues, yet with a massive variation of yield. IMO if you were a rational investor, you buy the property with the yields that the highest.

Averagevegan

thereality wrote: »

I would agree with you on this, if it was 1995...

You get a lot more for a rental, that is dressed up and nice, than generic and boring 'student house' ie white walls and hard wearing. Most landlords avoid white walls, as they are impossible to keep clean

Most landlords are amateurs. They will likely want to buy something, that they too would live in. Look at all the landlords who buy plush apartments in the IFSC/Grand Canal Dock with yields of 5/6%, when you can buy homes in a ****ty parts of Dublin with yields of around 12-13%. It is the same city affected by the same macro-economic issues, yet with a massive variation of yield. IMO if you were a rational investor, you buy the property with the yields that the highest.

That might all be true, but I won't be renting it.

If the new owner wants a higher finish, new paint etc than they can make that decision based on their cash flow and write it off against the rent.

The spread on rents betwewn the good and bad places is pretty small. maybe 15%,

High yields come with higher risk. Some LL might know enough to manage the risk but it's definitely not for everyone.

noel100

Well I know someone who rented there home for a few years had it on the market little to some interest. Home tired. Advised to paint and decorate and got 55k above the asking. 3k spent on decoration.

Lumen

Depends on the house and area. Take advice from EA you're going to use.

Victor

Averagevegan wrote: »

For an investment, I'd be painting it top to bottom white, no carpets, everything hard wearing!
Basic, clean, functional and ready to let day one.

If it's a home, I'd be working on the curb appeal e.g. nicer colour scheme, consistent details through out, some nicer lights, rugs, better storage, potted plants etc

None of this, as people will redecorate to their own tastes anyway and you will be wasting your money.

If there are any serious problems, e.g. rising damp or a dodgy fuse board, I would consider addressing them, on the basis that you can then categorically state that those issues don't exist (anymore).

If you want to paint, etc. to keep yourself happy for the next few years, fire ahead, but consider what colours to use, e.g. dark colours make ceilings look lower, dark walls make rooms look smaller.

Of course, de-clutter, address condensation, etc.

thereality

Averagevegan wrote: »

If the new owner wants a higher finish, new paint etc than they can make that decision based on their cash flow and write it off against the rent.

Except the new owner will not likely be a screwed investor. It was be a teacher or an accountant with a few hundred thousand sitting in the bank at 0% thinking it would a great investment to own a house...

Averagevegan wrote: »

The spread on rents betwewn the good and bad places is pretty small. maybe 15%,

Not at all. The yields on a trophy home in Dublin can be as low as 3/4%, when a block of pre-63s can be 12-15%. That is not pretty small

Averagevegan wrote: »

High yields come with higher risk. Some LL might know enough to manage the risk but it's definitely not for everyone.

Not at all either. Have you ever heard of value investing? It is how the likes of Warren Buffett is so rich. You find assets that are not loved by the market, as they are an unsexy industry or business. So they are priced too cheaply. Is a block of dirty, grimy apartments in the North Inner City higher risk than a trophy home in Ballsbridge? Not really. You will always find a tenant in the middle of Dublin City.

The problem is more people want to buy a sexy house in Ballsbridge than a block of dirty apartments in the North Inner City. Irish REITs are generally filled with low yield luxury apartments.

Smart property investors own blocks of unloved apartments/houses than lovely homes in Dublin 4