How to Make Money from Property

Do you fancy yourself as a property developer or an investor? Maybe you’re a builder who wants to set up their own business, or you’ve developed a new technology that could revolutionize construction. Wherever your interests lay, there’s ample scope for you to turn a profit from bricks and mortar.

Property markets are just as susceptible to economic downturns as any other business, but the advantage of being in a property-related business is that people will always need homes, and the market will inevitably rise again even after a serious setback such as the global banking crisis ten years ago.

There are also many different ways you can make money from property, and it can be a rewarding and profitable lifestyle if you go about it the right way.

The investor

If you have some spare cash and you’re considering how to make it grow, investment could be the answer. You can either purchase properties for rent and become a landlord, or if you prefer to stay hands-off, join a consortium or employ an agency to manage your properties for you.

Buying a property in the first place does require a considerable commitment, and you’d need to be confident that the rent you could achieve would cover the mortgage payments and leave you a decent profit as well. It’s possible to build up an extensive portfolio of property, and in addition to earning from your tenants, you retain the value of the property for the future. Over time, your investment could make you a sizeable return, especially if property prices continue to rise.

The builder

Have you been building houses for someone else and feel you’d make more money if you set up your own business? Starting a construction company won’t be cheap, because you’ll need to invest in tools and equipment, and have a sensible marketing budget. You’ll also need to employ tradespeople, which you could do by hiring your own team, or sub-contracting the specialist work. It’s a good idea to consider teaming up with someone who has business and marketing acumen to handle that side of things while you concentrate on the building side. That way you use your skill set to do what you do best, while your partner handles all the office-based tasks.

If you have dreams of running your own building firm, make sure you cost out the start-up investment accurately and do make sure there’s enough business available in your area. If there are already plenty of builders in your location, you’ll struggle to find enough work to make your business viable. Marketing effectively is essential to your business’s success, and if you want to make an impact, you’ll need an effective website to act as a shop window and a marketing tool. It’s a good idea to use a design company that has extensive experience in creating home builders websites to ensure your site reflects the quality of your business.

Another factor to consider is finding your niche. You’ll do much better if you can target a specific need amongst house buyers, such as building bespoke homes, renovating period properties, or using eco-friendly building materials. Decide where your skills and interests are best concentrated, and have a look at how much demand there is for these kinds of services before committing to a specialist niche. There are many different niches you could occupy, so see what’s missing in the local area and whether it’s a gap you could fill successfully.

The developer

You don’t need to be wealthy to become a property developer – in fact, it’s one of the best ways to get into the sector, if you start small. Start by looking for a property that has potential and doesn’t need too much doing to it, as it can be quite overwhelming to take on a big, expensive project as your first development. You need to work out what it will cost to undertake the renovation or remodeling work, add this to the original cost of the property, and then compare this figure to what you could reasonably expect to sell the finished house for.

It’s critical that you don’t underestimate the costs or over-estimate the sale price, because you could easily find you come out at the end having made little or no profit. Don’t forget you’ll need to factor in costs such as mortgage repayments or loans that need to be paid for the period when the property is up for sale. If you get your figures right, you could make a substantial amount on each property, which means you can pretty quickly expand your ambitions to larger projects and having more than one property on the go at once.

One way of saving a considerable amount of money is to carry out as much of the work yourself as possible. If you have skills in the building trades, this gives you a definite advantage. If you have some experience of decorating or laboring, then you could save on related expenses. However, it’s essential that the finished work is of high quality, otherwise your house will be harder to sell, especially for a premium.

Selling property

If you’re good at selling and passionate about property, real estate sales might be your ideal career. You’ll need to sort out the relevant training and certification and build up your reputation in the field, but if you have a talent for showing and selling houses, you could make a very good living from it. You could expand into running your own agency if you do well, and then you could start earning a sizeable income.

In addition to these examples, there’s also plenty of opportunities in areas such as architecture, interior design, landscaping, and household management. With so many diverse ways to make a living from property, you should be able to find a career that suits your abilities and in which you’ll be interested. Property is a vast, global sector that requires many talented and visionary people to sustain it in the future, so if you think you’ve got what it takes, find out more about making a profit from property.