The Complete Guide to Investing in Property

Liz Hodgkinson is a prolific author and journalist who has written over 40 books. She writes regularly on property matters for the Evening Standard and the Daily Mail, and also contributes to The Guardian, The Independent and various magazines and websites. She is the author of the highly successful The Complete Guide to Letting Property and The Complete Guide to Buying a Property Abroad, both published by Kogan Page.

Introduction 1 Determining the market Investing in your own home; Investing in buy-to-let; Buying a second home or holiday cottage; Buying abroad; Buying off-plan, either home or abroad; Buying a wreck and doing it up (developing); Buying commercial property; Buying a business such as a hotel or B&B; Buying property to put into a SIPP or a REIT; Selling your main home and pocketing the proceeds; Buying ground rents and freeholds; Buying at auction; The important questions to ask yourself 2 Using your own home Buying a house together - advice for couples; Finance; Getting a mortgage; Jesus saves, Moses invests - but what about Mohammed?; Freehold or leasehold?; Buying a wreck in an up and coming area, doing it up and then selling on at a massive profit; Building your own home and selling it on; Renting out a room (or rooms); Renting out your home to holidaymakers and overseas visitors; Using part of your home as a hotel or B&B; Renting out a self-contained flat within your home; Inheritance tax; Letting out your home to film and TV crews; Tax matters 3 Buy-to-let Working out the yield; Guaranteed rentals; How the different tenant markets work; Leasing to the local authority or a housing association; Being a social landlord; Property clubs; Would you enjoy being a landlord?; Doing it together; Beware the leasehold trap; Personal story 4 Developing property Getting started; Finance; Which improvements add value?; Buying land; Buying at auction; Conversions and change of use; Listed buildings 5 Holiday lets Purchasing and financing a holiday cottage; Investment pointers; Interior design; Holiday lettings overseas; Caravans, mobile homes and park homes; VAT 6 Commercial property Mortgages; Tax implications; Lease premiums; Flats above shops; Commercial premises abroad; Syndicated property purchase; Property unit trusts 7 Setting up a B&B The couple trap; Markets and buyers; Research; Improving profitability; Finance; VAT; Legislation issues; Business rates; Fire safety; Catering; Liquor licensing; Television licences; Disabled access; Furniture and fittings; Starting from scratch; Ratings 23; And finally... 8 Buying property abroad Finance and mortgages; Tax matters; Profitability; Existing markets; Emerging markets; Putting foreign property into a SIPP; Last word on buying abroad 9 SIPPs and REITs REITS (Real Estate Investment Trusts)