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If I got a company to manage it, any idea what they typically take off the top and are they responsible if some deadshit trashes my place or do I still need to cover all that with some kind of rental insurance?
My guess is that a management company would charge you 5 / 10 / 15% for doing fuck all, and you'd end up having to pay more to get anything fixed whatever happened.
If someone trashed your place, you will have to pay for it yourself, unless you're insured against it - A management agent will not insure you themselves, but will happily charge a premium on top of the insurance they get for you.
Openrent has a lot of useful add-ons for self-managers - insurance, for example (contingent on having them do the background checks etc...), rent collection (£10 a month, iirc).
If you own the place already, it could be worth it. I'd never actually buy a place to rent it out - there is fuck all money in that, unless you're prepared to be a slumlord.
NotThamesWater-
I'm mortgage-free. I have no interest (sick pun bruh!) in getting a mortgage just to become a landlord. It was more that if I move somewhere I couldn't be arsed with the hassle of trying to sell my place (and I kind of like the idea of having a fully paid off place to fall back on)
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there is fuck all money in that
I think that's a bit far fetched, granted the glory days are long behind us, but still a very viable option (esp during current low interest era). But property is proven investment that has out performed nearly every other conventional asset class.
Make sure you do your homework and your sums to make sure your more then covering expenses (esp tax) and keep a pot for potential issues. Most importantly find good tenants. As long as the property is local you can easily manage it yourself.
hippy
wildwest
Is there any money to be made in it do you think? I want to buy a new place and was thinking of hanging onto my current flat for rental income. Service charge would wipe out a month's rent, I extended the lease already to 999 years a few years back and I own part of freehold.
If I got a company to manage it, any idea what they typically take off the top and are they responsible if some deadshit trashes my place or do I still need to cover all that with some kind of rental insurance?
The other option is to just sell it and put it towards a newer place but there's hassle in that too.