by Martin Hawes
"The devil of property investment is in the detail. There are good profits to be made from property investment—but not without some work and some attention to the minutiae of management.
"Too many people go into property investment without really thinking through what the long term ownership will be like. Inspired and motivated perhaps by some upbeat seminars, some people buy into property forgetting about the hard graft and work that is likely to be required for years and decades. Certainly, money is made in the buying (what you buy, and how you buy it). But it is also made in the management—the retention of long-term happy tenants keeping vacancy rates low and maintenance up on investments. This work is often not much mentioned by the people selling at seminars—nor much thought about by those in the excitement of making their first purchase.
"Property investment is a misnomer. It is not a passive investment that you can buy then forget. Instead it is a business—something to be managed hands-on for long periods of time. As such, you need to perform all the roles of a business owner—financial management, people management, marketing, customer relations and asset management. Going into the purchase of a rental property with the attitude of someone buying into a business is critical as you will have the expectation of being a long-term manager, prepared to drive the detail.
"With this in mind, Roger Clist’s book fills a gap. It is not simply about why you should invest in property, what to buy and how to buy it, but has much of the detail needed by a long-term manager. It is a practical book, telling Roger’s story—the good and the bad, put together to guide you in your endeavours in property.
"There is a lot to learn in the business of property investment. Here is a good continuation of your learning."
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