Mentee Call With Gurang!

Episode 19 of the The Serviced Accommodation Property Podcast podcast, hosted by Kevin Poneskis, titled "Mentee Call With Gurang!" was published on March 31, 2019 and runs 37 minutes.

March 31, 2019 ·37m · The Serviced Accommodation Property Podcast

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Summary

Register your interest in Serviced Accommodation Discovery Day here, and a member of our team will get back to you to confirm your place at your preferred date. In this very special episode, become a voyeur as Kevin delivers a live mentoring call to Gurang, a standard landlord who owns buy-to-let properties. Gurang’s long-term plan is to move into the world of Serviced Accommodation, and is satisfied with the advice he’s received so far. But he wants to understand certain SA management aspects and strategies better. Listen in as Kevin shares with Gurang the secrets that have made him so successful. KEY TAKEAWAYS SA Management Kevin advises that it’s way more beneficial to learn how to run serviced accommodation yourself on a few properties, before taking the leap into SA management on a grander scale. What’s the best strategy for finding Rent-To-SA properties? Gurang favours the idea of enquiring through letting agents to find properties that might be suitable, but Kevin explains how this can sometimes lead to unnecessary barriers to entry. Cultivating relationships with letting agents is valuable, but can take time. It’s sometimes best to go directly to landlords. Initially, it’s wise to build a stable of properties before speaking to letting agents, so that a leap of faith on their part is not such a requirement. They can see that you’re already up and running. Letting agents are far more attracted to established credibility. Gurang favours this approach because of the ready-made pool of properties, as well as the fact that letting agents will have already determined the reliability of a landlord. But sometimes the perception of these things is not in keeping with reality. Landlords, who are often trying to avoid using letting agents, are the most likely people to have tenant issues due to not carrying out the necessary checks, and having no middleman to resolve disputes. If these landlords can be approached privately by those seeking Rent-To-SA properties, and providing guarantees, it can lead to a much better deal on both sides. Capital Investment to start? This can range from zero to anything. Sometimes it’s possible to earn even before you’ve started, as per an example from Kevin’s own history. If the property needs very little in terms of investment, then it can be practically zero. The flip side can be that the property may need rental payments, a deposit, tenant referencing, furnishing or refurbishment. The takeaway here is that every deal is different. Are there any clear advantages to accumulating a few Serviced Accommodation properties before you turn to managing others? The benefits of this approach are incalculable,. By setting up and running a few, you’ll have the necessary infrastructure ready to take on others if you’re approached to manage SA properties. The profits might not be as much in management only, but you’ll simply be plugging these properties into your own systems. You should, by the time you begin to manage others, have cleaners ready to work, laundry services in place, and accounting systems that facilitate your business. Juggling full-time employment? Gurang has a young family, and is very interested in the kind of time commitment required to kick off his venture. In Kevin’s opinion, people can become “busy fools” if they don’t prepare properly, or learn how to leverage. Having the right support network is essential. One strategy is to acquire the property and pass it on to a management company straight away. The profits are smaller, but the workload is far less. It’s always about successfully outsourcing, growing and scaling in a way you can manage, and this is only possible by leveraging other people. Another strategy would be source the entire deal on to someone else who wants to run serviced accommodations. This can be attractive as you don’t have to be operating in that area of the country yourself. These deals can be done nationwide. This is why Kevin also suggests making sure that you are fully trained in due diligence. You’ll find deal packaging a whole lot easier in terms of selling, but also in buying. You’ll be able to read the contents of a packaged deal yourself. What are the ideal qualities required in order to become successful? Kevin identifies tenacity, enthusiasm, persistence, drive and determination as the key qualities required, no matter what the strategy. Leaving your comfort zone is not an option. It’s a necessity. BEST MOMENTS ‘People can become “busy fools” if they don’t prepare properly’ ‘Quitters never win and winners never quit’ ‘If you want a different life badly enough, then you’ll do everything necessary’ ‘Focus on what you want out of life. Use a vision board. Make sure you are focussing on it always’ ‘You can make money or you can make excuses. But you can’t make both’ VALUABLE RESOURCES https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-serviced-accommodation-property-podcast/id1436005279?mt=2 ABOUT THE HOST Your host Kevin Poneskis enjoys public speaking, travelling, exercising and keeping fit. He also enjoys working with a charity called STOLL which provides accommodation and training for homeless veterans. Kevin was in the British Army serving 24 years, mostly in a Commando unit and retired at the rank of Regimental Sergeant Major. He left the Army in 2011 and became a full-time property investor. During most of his Army career, Kevin was investing in property and has been a property investor now for over 27 years. CONTACT METHOD https://en-gb.facebook.com/propertysoldier/ [email protected]