Educational blog
Things change extremely quickly in the property industry, both here in South Africa and in the UK and the United States, and
education is the most important strategy for staying safe in a fluctuating market.
If you're interested in building a successful, profitable property portfolio, we'll provide all the education you need, at
no charge, as part of our service to you. Many other companies charge you an arm and a leg for a very basic level of education,
but in these pages, Brett Wood, our Managing Director has made available over 300 articles, all archived. Don't forget to
register as a client for free access to our team who can answer any
questions you may have.
Latest post: 'The Perfect Complement to your Off the Plan Purchase… The Deposit Bond' (16 November 2008)
Hey Guys,
Often times there is a great deal of time between the exchange of a property and completion in the case of an Off the Plan purchase. So this can means that you have to commit your deposit for a long time. There are many reasons that you might not want to tie your money up for this. It’s these cases a Deposit Bond is a great solution.
Effectively the deposit bond is an alternative to a cash deposit.
So what is a Deposit Bond?
Basically, a deposit bond is an insurance policy, although not a insurance policy for you but for the developer...
Read more...2008 posts...
Brett and Arlene's Wedding Photos. (14 November 2008)My new book cover: Have your say! (13 November 2008)New Video: Weekly Property Update - 11th Nov 2008 (12 November 2008)Dirty Rotten Bast&^ds... Important message for those with a flexible facility. (10 November 2008)Check out our new "Upcoming Events" page... (07 November 2008)Awesome news for investors: base rate comes down to 3%... (06 November 2008)A Stark Contrast: Australian and UK Housing supply . (21 October 2008)Doomsday or Payday? The beginning of the end!!! (16 October 2008)Paul Krugman, Nobel Prize winner congratulates Gordon Brown... (14 October 2008)Ever heard the saying 'Safe as Shares'...? (13 October 2008)What does it all mean? (09 October 2008)What happens when you don't have news for 12 days... (09 October 2008)November Client Workshop Full! Places still available for Young Investors.... (23 September 2008)Our First 3+1 Plan Workshop a huge success... (22 September 2008)Andrew Marr's interview of Gordon Brown. (21 September 2008)Our Spain Trip.... (20 September 2008)YPC Young Investors Workshop: Saturday 29th November (10 September 2008)Next Client Workshop: Saturday 22nd November (10 September 2008)The 'Time' value of money!!! (08 September 2008)South African Charity Golf Day a massive success despite the rain... (05 September 2008)Elizabeth Jones joins the team as Events Manager (30 August 2008)It's a perfectly natural part of building a portfolio... (29 August 2008)Spot the YPC team member (11 August 2008)The problem with "food & fuel" inflation (21 July 2008)Important changes to our snagging policies... (17 July 2008)10 tactics to survive the 2008/2009 downturn... (03 July 2008)New build shake up will bring certainty back to the market... (30 June 2008)What to do if your 85% mortgage can only be refinanced to 75%... (25 June 2008)The difference between 'Cash flow' and 'Income'... (19 June 2008)Credit Crunch: a new sting in its tail... (12 June 2008)The same me, rebranded (06 June 2008)A response to the truth about property TV Show on BBC2! (13 May 2008)May 08: 75% mortgages and other Buy to Let Ramblings... (08 May 2008)Stability returning to the markets... (04 May 2008)YPC launches Property Portal (03 May 2008)Foreign Buyers Guide to purchasing in the UK... (12 April 2008)Our 4 Property Guarantees: taking away the risk in working with us! (30 March 2008)YPC's New Flexible Working hours. (29 March 2008)How many property investment companies actually give you their direct mobile numbers? (27 March 2008)Credit Crunch Update - Where have all the 85% mortgages gone? (24 March 2008)IMPORTANT: How will the 'credit crunch' affect your off plan mortgage? (10 March 2008)What is a RICS valuation really worth? (18 February 2008)When the United States coughs the world gets a cold!!! (11 February 2008)Why you must track your portfolio! (08 February 2008)I have an apology... (02 February 2008)The Principle of 'Zig-Zag'! (22 January 2008)Brett's 5 and Hold Strategy - 76 point checklist. (20 January 2008)YPC moves to new office in Angel, London (03 January 2008)2007 posts...
YPC Young Investors Club (14 December 2007)Credit Squeeze: What does it REALLY mean to you? (16 November 2007)If I could pass along just one lesson on investing in the UK, it would be... (15 November 2007)Christmas bargains courtesy of your friendly developers... (13 November 2007)YPC Christmas Drinks (09 November 2007)What happens when your development burns down? (07 November 2007)Which YPC team member has the best moustache? (05 November 2007)My thoughts on the latest Council of Mortgage Lenders report... (30 October 2007)The 2 rents in property... (10 October 2007)My property crystal ball (or) where the market will be in 2010 (14 September 2007)Having problems managing the cash flow now that interest rates are high? (27 August 2007)Why the share market is in turmoil... and why it matters to your portfolio... (15 August 2007)"How to build a property portfolio" -- a teleconference with Brett Wood (07 August 2007)Isn't it time you raised the rent?! (28 July 2007)My strategy is best! Isn't it? (17 July 2007)Why simple systems are so important! (15 July 2007)The principle of mortgage cost averaging (28 June 2007)My first Solo Helicopter flight! (13 June 2007)Are you an 80% person? (01 June 2007)Why I don't like long leasebacks, investment funds, hotel pods and other collective investments (23 May 2007)Affordable Housing and New Build Property... (16 May 2007)Brett gets engaged in Venice... (08 May 2007)Important changes and the Red Book rules (02 May 2007)Damien Senn interviews Brett Wood (17 April 2007)90% Emotion - 10% Property... (15 April 2007)Dinner Photos up on the website (10 April 2007)Dinner and drinks night raises £676 for charity! (01 April 2007)Why you shouldn't play the Monopoly boardgame (25 March 2007)Our first Client and Team Dinner and Drinks night - Saturday 31st March 2007 (23 March 2007)Who's responsible? Who's to blame? (23 March 2007)Remortgage and save up to £1950 per month (15 March 2007)We have donated £500 for Red Nose Day... (15 March 2007)"Set and Forget" property book review (09 March 2007)Recommended Reading (08 March 2007)What's your 'One Big Thing' this year? (24 February 2007)Where did all the middle class go? (21 February 2007)The lighter side of client testimonials (05 February 2007)Should you buy property in Thailand? (03 February 2007)What a portfolio manager will do for you? (01 February 2007)
Property Inspection: Heatley Mere, Lymm, Cheshire WA13 (27 January 2007)Congratulations to Chloe Batteson on her promotion to office manager. (26 January 2007)The best time to buy property is...? (24 January 2007) Property Inspection: Regency Court, South Woodford E18 (22 January 2007)Are you living paycheck to paycheck? (14 January 2007)2006 posts...
Christmas Wishes from the YPC Choir (17 December 2006)Why Progressive Property is probably not what you are after! (24 November 2006)Where does all your 'buy to let' postage go? (20 November 2006)Could your portfolio handle a 40% drop in the market? (17 November 2006)
Podcast #4: Brett's '5 and hold' strategy (15 November 2006)Do you have a "Dinner Party" portfolio? (14 November 2006)Why mortgage lenders never lose! (09 November 2006)Giving back to the local community (01 November 2006) Podcast #3: Why work with Your Property Club? (22 October 2006)How many is too many in a development? (19 October 2006) Property Inspection - Windsor Gate, High Wycombe (18 October 2006)Lets face it - things go wrong! Don't worry -- it's normal! (18 October 2006) Our First Property Inspection Video - Cheshire St, Shoreditch (12 October 2006)New development, any takers? :-) (06 October 2006)Launch of new clients' site with Ezytrac (04 October 2006) Podcast #2: Brett's "Set and Forget" Property Philosophy (23 September 2006)Which strategy is the best of all? (22 September 2006)The black, the white and the grey of purchasing property (20 September 2006)PropertyHounds - My spanish property managers... (20 September 2006)YourPropertyClub - What's in a name? (19 September 2006) Podcast #1: The 3 P's of the Property Mortgage (19 September 2006)How to adjust your Mortgage payment dates (12 September 2006)Why choose to work with Your Property Club? (11 September 2006)Are solicitors really alarmists? (05 September 2006)Why I decided to break our relationship with the previous company (04 September 2006)Brett's 5 and Hold Strategy (29 August 2006)How are you going to become rich? (03 August 2006)Why the right solicitor is vitally important to your portfolio (03 August 2006)Important precautions if exchanging without a mortgage. (22 June 2006)Are "gifted" deposits such a good thing? (13 June 2006)Good News for Property Investors (02 June 2006)What are Service Charges and Ground Rent? (13 May 2006)Effective ways to chop up your credit card! (12 May 2006)The 3 P's of the mortgage application (03 May 2006)Finally! Tenancy deposit protection is upon us! (18 April 2006)Why you shouldn't buy more than one in a development! (16 April 2006)Moving with the Market - Rentals (03 April 2006)How many properties before your portfolio will run off its own steam? (16 March 2006)Get educated, not just in property, but in basic finances too! (13 March 2006)The youngest millionaire (03 March 2006)You spend your cashflow and I will spend your Capital. (26 February 2006)"What I did before property" by Simon (09 February 2006)The Emu Investor that tried to spoil my sunday :) (05 February 2006)Congratulations to Simon Shankland (02 February 2006)No Decisions, No Responsibility (31 January 2006)How to set up your bank accounts to build your portfolio! (20 January 2006)The real reasons I do property (12 January 2006)Brett's 3 + 1 strategy (08 January 2006)What to do after 2 years cashflow is up? (04 January 2006)2005 posts...
How to find an extra £200 to pay for an additional buy to let property (part 1) (22 December 2005)Why use Your Property Club's preferred mortgage broker and solicitor? (04 December 2005)Why I direct debit everything! (27 November 2005)Get smart about credit cards! (26 November 2005)Why I don't invest in Bulgaria, Croatia, Florida, Cyprus, Romania or anywhere else (25 November 2005)What is inflation and how does it affect your portfolio? (20 November 2005)Spain or UK -- which is better? (18 November 2005)The real life use of leverage (16 November 2005)Why I closely control my cashflow (07 November 2005)Why am I 'skint'? A message for us all (13 October 2005)What does infrastructure mean to your portfolio? (09 October 2005)The Property letdown! (07 October 2005)What's your reward? (04 October 2005)The expected growth of your portfolio (30 September 2005)Important questions to ask your mortgage broker (28 September 2005)Emotional development of your portfolio (21 September 2005)Everything you need to know about "void" periods (14 September 2005)New build vs off plan; which is better? (10 September 2005)What guarantees have you got? (04 September 2005)Why I have blonde hair and don't wear a suit (01 September 2005)When to tell your family & friends about your property portfolio! (22 August 2005)Why buy in Spain? (19 August 2005)The 2 greatest concepts in property! (19 August 2005)Ego with success (15 August 2005)Trust me I can spell (10 August 2005)What do you want from your portfolio, *specifically*? (05 August 2005)What does BTL rentals stacking up mean? (02 August 2005)The Myth of Property Hotspots (24 July 2005)My new home.. (28 June 2005)What is 'due diligence'? (27 June 2005)Should you use credit cards, overdrafts and personal loans to build your portfolio. (21 June 2005)Decisionmaking (09 June 2005)Recycling your deposits (08 June 2005)The Property Sleep Test (07 June 2005)Spanish portfolio building (04 June 2005)Why lending criteria change (03 June 2005)The truth about inside track to property seminars (02 June 2005)How to purchase spanish property for under £10,000 (02 June 2005)Ezytrac - Portfolio Management Software (01 June 2005)2 laws of buy to let purchasing (31 May 2005)Property Cycles 2 - Uptrend/Cashflow (30 May 2005)One of those moments! (19 May 2005)Fast Track Property... Getting the Fast Track to Property Investment... (16 May 2005)Property Cycles - Phase 4 - Galloping/Restructure (16 May 2005)Don't sign anything! (16 May 2005)Property Cycles - Phase 3 - Galloping/Buy/Remortgage (15 May 2005)Property Cycles - Phase 1 - Stagnate/Watch Cashflow (06 May 2005)What is a "set and forget" property investor? (05 May 2005)How much should you receive in rent? (04 May 2005)No Perfect Deal, Only Perfect Timing (23 April 2005)Why a 10% deposit is required to buy off-plan (20 April 2005)Managing your lettings agent (Part I) (13 April 2005)Upfront and honest policy (08 April 2005)Should you ever pay off your property? (03 April 2005)Brett's 10% rule of thumb (28 March 2005)Brett's "cash house" strategy (20 March 2005)Brett's 7-10 x 7-10 strategy (14 March 2005)Brett's "set & forget property" strategy (10 March 2005)Cashflow bad, capital good (05 March 2005)Important property dates and your cashflow (28 February 2005)There are only 2 reasons to build a portfolio (20 February 2005)Money doesn't make you happy (13 February 2005)How do you create income from property? (04 February 2005)Investing "cashflow as capital" strategy (31 January 2005)Brett's "set & forget" philosophy (28 January 2005)Brett's "full management" strategy (15 January 2005)Brett's 1, 2 STOP Strategy (10 January 2005)Why We Say Property "Portfolio" (02 January 2005)2004 posts...
Everyone loves surprises (except in property) (13 December 2004)Brett's 2 year cashflow rule (28 November 2004)In search of the perfect property deal (05 October 2004)Beware of inflated valuations (30 September 2004)Everyperson House Rule (18 September 2004) 