The HMO Success Podcast with Wendy Whittaker-Large

How a single mum went from broke to being a property multimillionaire! Susie Cole on health, wealth and happiness.

How a single mum went from broke to being a property multimillionaire! Susie Cole on health, wealth and happiness.

Susannah Cole started in property because she had a problem to solve. As a head of household with two little children, her month and money were only just meeting (and sometimes there was a gap) and she wanted more time with her family rather than having to swap her time for money at work.

She could see property could deliver that, so she set to! She started The Good Property Company in 2011, as a kitchen table start-up. At first the goal was to source deals for investors, work on JV flips and then invest in property for herself and her family, to reach Financial Freedom and get to her personal goal which was more time with her family and loved ones, and the relatively passive money coming in, to not worry about money!

In the first four 1/2 years of being full time in property, The Good Property Company sourced more than 200+ properties, all in Bristol, with a value of over £45 million, at a purchase price of £30 million(before refurb).She was asked by Wendy, who became her first student, to share her simple step-by-step-systems, and since then she has taught thousands of student to flip, deal source, JV, find investors and undertake the journey to get to Financial Freedom, so they can reach their goals, and spend more time with their family and friends, and live life on their terms.She has a fantastic YouTube channel (Susannah Cole / The Good Property Company), and a super helpful website where you can download helpful property checklists and packs, and join her online 60 Day Academies, as well as watch her motivating and helpful property webinars on Deal Sourcing, Flipping, and Investing.

Not bad for a start up!

Since then. life has taken its various turns and Susannah shares candidly about her recent health scares and how she has pulled through with her usual tenacity and wisdom. 

A fantastic guest who shares her enthusiasm for both property and entrepreneurialism, who is not to be missed!

To find out more about Susannah Cole and her company, The Good Property Company ,here are your links:

Website:https://thegoodpropertycompany.co.uk/

YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/c/TheGoodPropertyCompanySusannahCole

Insta:https://www.instagram.com/susannahcoleuk

Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/SusannahColeTGPC

 

Unlocking the Secrets to HMO Mortgages - Exclusive Interview with a Specialist HMO Mortgage Broker!

Unlocking the Secrets to HMO Mortgages - Exclusive Interview with a Specialist HMO Mortgage Broker!

Getting access to the right finance before, during and at the end of your project is key to success. Without the right kind of finance and financial advice, you could find yourself haemorrhaging money during the refurb, or leaving too much money in at the end of the project.  Knowing when to execute the re-finance, along with the characteristics that make a feasible project for pulling all your money out is the specialism of my guest today. 

As a Specialist Property Finance Broker, Henry Barley from Advocate Finance has helped us multiple times to get the right finance for our HMO and development projects and also for many of my clients. He knows masses about HMOs and in particular the wide range of products that are available for you if you're creating HMOs.

To contact Advocate call 01206 544333 or go to their website www.advocatefinance.co.uk Address: Office 5 Aster House, Lanswood Park Business Centre Elmstead Market, Colchester, Essex, CO7 7FD

 

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If you would like to reserve your space on one of my upcoming events (HMO Discovery in Birmingham or London) please email me at wendy@wendywl.uk and I will send you the link to book and pay for your special place. 

 

At just £99 +vat for a full day's interactive training, complete with refreshments, lunch and loads of tips, tricks and tools, you'll have an amazing day and get 2024 HMO investing off with a bang!

The Top 10 HMO Mistakes not to make in 2024!

The Top 10 HMO Mistakes not to make in 2024!

Avoiding problems is just as important to success as having results. In this episode I go over the top 10 mistakes that I often see HMO investors make and how and why they happen.  Whether you are a seasoned investor or you are just getting started, I'm convinced that these top 10 mistakes can be avoided, which could be vital to your progress. 

Over the years I've been investing, I've seen HMO businesses come and go, and the ones that last the course seem to be able to incorporate these lessons effectively year after year. 

Please leave me a quick review on Apple Podcasts  or Spotify if you find this episode useful. Share, like and comment!

Got any questions? Please get in touch via wendy@wendywl.uk (I answer all emails personally). 

If you want to join my 1-2-1 mentoring program, you can enquire here.

New to HMOs? Come along to my HMO Discovery Day where you'll learn my unique 5 Step System to creating a profitable HMO portfolio. Just email me for more details!

Why I don’t set goals and I don’t think you should either

Why I don't set goals and I don't think you should either - Episode 106

This is an outrageous claim Wendy! What do you mean, you don't set goals and you don't think I should either?!

Well, simply put - because, just like New Year's Resolutions, they often don't work! Instead, I use a simple action based planning system that helps me get into an excellent routine early in the year. And then I stick to it throughout the year. I have an accountability buddy who holds me to account and I track my activities each and every week this way. 

It creates a routine, a system and embeds useful habits. All of which enable me to run a healthy, harmonious home and business. 

Listen now to hear what I do, and get in touch if you would like to know more!

Wishing you an amazing 2024 and a very Happy New Year!

from Wendy xxx

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Why You Need a Five Step System to Create a Successful Portfolio of HMOs

Why You Need a Five Step System to Create a Successful Portfolio of HMOs

A SYSTEM saves you stress, time, energy and money. 

1. It tells you what to do and when. Most people when they’re learning something new benefit from learning from others who have already been there and done it. If you’re trying to copy and paste an income generating model you don’t need to create it from scratch. You can copy what others have done and improve it or adapt it to fit your situation. Smaller HMOs, larger HMOs, more attractive HMOs, better internally designed HMOs. 
2. Two of the biggest mistakes I see are people waiting to start, or failing to plan - both lead to disaster. Both are risk. With a plan you have actionable steps that help you plot out your course. Easy to get lost and hard if you don’t have a map
3. Remember you are implementing not just learning. You need to learn and implement concurrently - simultaneously. With a five step system you know where you are on the journey and what you need to do to take your next step. You want to put this into practice which means making it happen. Time, energy and money. 
4. It avoids overwhelm and it avoids procrastination
5. It makes it easy - not simple, but easy. Would you attempt to cook something complicated without a recipe? I wouldn’t! Getting each aspect right is key - from ingredients to timings to temperature. 

HMOs are the same - legislation, regulations, housing standards, design, location, processes for managing, scaling up; a recipe for success. 

A tried and tested recipe is a recipe for success not disaster. 

This is my Five Step System:

1. Find it
2. Fund It 
3. Finish It
4. Fill It
5. Future proof it

All steps lead neatly from one to another

Each is perfectly worked out. 

I’ve written 2 books about my system, and I have learnt from my actions and taking risks and making mistakes so you don’t have to. 

I’ve raised £ millions  from investors to grow my portfolio and you can learn how to do this too in the Fund it section of the system. 

I’m running a Discovery Day 27th Jan in Bham and 24th Feb in London -

The investment is just £99 plus vat

Please email me on wendy@hmosuccecss.co.uk to express an interest and you’ll get my very special and unique 16 Weeks to Success Action Plan for coming along - absolutely free. 

 

HMOs in 2024 - What are the stats telling us?

HMOs in 2024 - What are the stats telling us? 

Looking at the wider macro economic picture is crucial to understand where interest rates and property values might go. In addition there are a number of other statistics that help us as HMO investors to see the way the wind is blowing and what the opportunities and threats are to the HMO landscape.

In this episode you'll learn what other factors are vital when looking at the economy and specific features that will affect HMOs in 2024. 

To access the slides that accompany this podcast you can do so here

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For more information, guidance and support to help you invest in HMOs and create a profitable property portfolio, please head on over to my website www.hmosuccess.co.uk

You'll find some free downloads to learn about HMOs as a high cashflowing strategy and how you can get started with very little money. If you want to learn more about my amazing tips which I compiled to help people just like you, you can get your own copy of my '101 Essential Tips for Running a Professional HMO' here. (Just pay postage and packing). https://www.hmosuccess.co.uk/101-book-pp

My facebook group is a lively community of HMO investors where you can find tips and tricks to investing in HMOs and you can join here. 

https://facebook.com/groups/TheUltimateHMOSuccessSystem/

For a FREE 30 minute call for any help you might need with HMOs, and to understand what I can offer you to help you progress your portfolio, please book a call here: https://fwfozt-free.10to8.com/

I look forward to hearing from you!

Wendy

 

 

 

Today is the DAY! The Legal Battle is Won! Episode 103 The HMO Success Podcast

Today is the DAY! The Legal Battle is Won! Episode 103

In case you missed the HMO Council Tax Reform Group's webinar last week about the changes to legislation and what you can do if you are still battling away, here it is! Today is the day when the law is officially changed so that no room in an HMO can be individually banded for council tax. We have been battling this for over two years but we found out a few weeks ago that legislation had passed into law and it gets enacted today!

In today's episode you will hear the recording of a webinar we ran to answer questions about the process. We also have a FAQ document you can download here. 

Please forward any questions to us via wendy@hmosuccess.co.uk

or join our Facebook group https://www.facebook.com/groups/hmoct

We look forward to hearing from you and listening to your stories. We will continue to support anyone who has been affected and are here to educate, inform and support. 

We're planning a big celebration event early next year, so if you want to be on the guest list please complete the Contact Us form on our website here:

https://hmosandcounciltax.co.uk/getinvolved/

And thank you if you did anything to support this amazing campaign!

Creating a Funnel for your HMO Business - Episode 102

Creating a Funnel for your HMO Business - Episode 102

You may not have realised that a funnel is a key part of your process to find investors, clients or properties. By learning how exactly to create a funnel, you can find the right properties and people to work with in your HMO business. Whether you are an investor, a developer or a sourcer - you need deals and you probably also need money. 

Networking is a fantastic way to find lots of people - but are they RIGHT for you, and are you RIGHT for them? 

In this episode I go into what makes up a successful funnel and how you can save yourself oodles of time and money creating one of these before spending hours on the road, or hundreds of pounds on advertising. 

Having done this a number of times myself, I can teach you exactly what to do and the steps you need to take to get your business onto the next level.

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For more information, guidance and support to help you invest in HMOs and create a profitable property portfolio, please head on over to my website www.hmosuccess.co.uk

You'll find some free downloads to learn about HMOs as a high cashflowing strategy and how you can get started with very little money. If you want to learn more about my amazing tips which I compiled to help people just like you, you can get your own copy of my '101 Essential Tips for Running a Professional HMO' here. (Just pay postage and packing). https://www.hmosuccess.co.uk/101-book-pp

My facebook group is a lively community of HMO investors where you can find tips and tricks to investing in HMOs and you can join here. 

https://facebook.com/groups/TheUltimateHMOSuccessSystem/

For a FREE 30 minute call for any help you might need with HMOs, and to understand what I can offer you to help you progress your portfolio, please book a call here: https://fwfozt-free.10to8.com/

I look forward to hearing from you!

SPECIAL EPISODE - We Won Our Fight Against Council Tax on HMO Rooms!

SPECIAL EPISODE - We Won Our Fight Against Council Tax on HMO Rooms!

I am SO delighted to be releasing this podcast episode (even whilst away on holiday) as I just HAD to share the amazing news of our campaign win. 

In the extraordinary 2 years since we set up the HMO Council Tax Reform Group, so much has happened, but we are excited beyond measure that our campaign has landed and the Government is changing its approach to banding individual HMO rooms for Council Tax. 

In today’s unedited and special episode, I’ll explain exactly what the government has said, and a few questions that still remain to be answered! Overall the news is fantastic for HMO tenants and landlords. We still have some work to do in tidying up what has been going on for the last few years. But we’ll get there! 

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed individuals can change the world. In fact, it's the only thing that ever has." Margaret Mead

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Official Press Release

Government set to axe multiple council tax bills on HMO properties

End of  the ‘Tenant Council Tax’

Welcome news has emerged that the Government is changing the law on council tax being imposed on individual rooms in Houses of Multiple Occupation (HMOs) .

This change in the law will protect tenants in HMOs from being taxed on their bedrooms and returns to principles on which the council tax was established.

Earlier in the year the Government announced an accelerated consultation on  reforming council taxation of HMOs after thousands of landlords and tenants were being adversely affected by a Valuation Office Agency policy of making individual bedrooms in shared houses liable for council tax. The policy increased the council tax payable by an HMO by many thousands of pounds, often making continued use as an HMO unaffordable.

The Government has now announced the outcome of the consultation and is pledging to change the law by the end of the year.

The Govt stated: “The amendment to legislation will ensure that HMOs will be valued as a single property, creating consistency in the sector, and provide certainty for councils and households moving forward. This should also help ease administrative burdens for councils as the council tax liability should remain with the landlord in the usual way, rather than moving to individual tenants who may only occupy the property for a short period of time.”

These changes will reverse a policy  by the Valuation Office Agency on taxing HMOs first put into practice in 2015 whereby  randomly selected properties were being hit with multiple bills, one council tax bill for every bedroom, making the house liable for seven or eight times the original tax.

Variously dubbed ‘Poll Tax Mark II’ ‘Bedroom Tax Mark II’  or the ‘Toilet Tax’ (when applied to en-suite bedrooms) the practice only targeted selected HMOs. Mistakes in law and fact were rife with, in some cases, cupboards and utility rooms being made liable for council tax bills.

The impact of the policy has been to drive out tenants unable to meet the bills, cause overcrowding and in some cases forcing the closure of  entire HMOs, reducing the supply of available accommodation  for tenants on low and middle incomes.

In other cases landlords were being  suddenly chased  for multiple bills by councils and debt collecting companies  collecting the tax.

Effectively, this will protect both landlords and tenants  from excessive tax demands living in HMOs and prevent rooms without washing or cooking facilities being banded as flats with individual flats liable for tax.

This has been hailed as a victory by the HMO Council Tax Reform Group  who have been campaigning tirelessly for this practice to end. 

Alan Murdie, legal advisor and barrister for the group commented ‘This is excellent news in so far as it indicates that the government has recognised that VOA policy needs to view HMOs as a single property. We wait to see the implementation in practice.’

Wendy Whittaker-Large and Daryn Brewer said ‘Landlords and tenants will be hugely relieved to see this change happening. No longer will there be any question about council tax and who is responsible for paying. It will be the landlord’s responsibility to pay one bill for the whole property. We are delighted to have won this ongoing fight for the whole HMO sector’

Matt Baker added ‘This gives certainty for the development of new and quality HMOs which is a huge help to the supply of much needed housing’ .    

The committee consists of Daryn Brewer, Alan Murdie, Matt Baker, Neil Chadda, Robert Johnson and an admin team and myself, Wendy Whittaker-Large.

 

https://hmosandcounciltax.co.uk/ 

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Government Response to Consultation: 

https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/council-tax-valuation-of-houses-in-multiple-occupation-hmos/outcome/council-tax-valuation-of-houses-in-multiple-occupation-hmos-summary-of-consultation-responses-and-government-response

 

Kirsty Darkins - The Opportunities for Investing in Commercial for HMOs and CMOs in 2023

Kirsty Darkins MRICS
E: kirsty@kdcommercial.uk
W: www.kdcommercial.co.uk

About Kirsty ...
I am a Chartered Surveyor by profession, starting in property in 1999 at an independent firm Innes
England in Nottingham. During my career I have worked for blue chip companies including Boots,
CBRE and Hammerson. I have a broad range of property and business experience having
managed multi million commercial and residential property portfolios across the UK and Ireland for
over 20 years. Over the last 6 years I have built my own consultancy business and portfolio of
commercial property investments including retail, office and mixed use properties.

I took a career break in 2014, travelled in Europe and did a lot of self-development education. This
was the beginning of my transition from property professional to property investor. Having achieved
my professional goals I knew that working for someone else exchanging time for money was no
longer what I wanted to do. In 2016 I set up my own property consultancy and began investing in
apartments on a Rent to Rent basis in Nottingham running them as Serviced Accommodation. I
also launched Progressive Property Network, a monthly network meeting in Birmingham and have
built a strong investor network and contact base as a result.

Today I have a twin focus, my commercial property consultancy KD Commercial and building my
own commercial property investment portfolios with my business partners Jamie MacPherson in JK
PropCo for commercial investments and Jon Ballard in Wem Commercial for commercial and
mixed use developments. I have also transferred my pensions to a SIPP investing jointly with other
SIPP investors in commercial property flips.