This is a collaborative post

Whether you are looking to retire early or later in life, you will need to think about how you will fund your retirement. This is where you may start thinking about buying an investment property to give you some extra money in addition to any other income you have. Let’s look at some things to consider before you take the plunge in buying an investment property.

 

How Much Do You Need to Retire?

First, think about what kind of lifestyle you want to have in retirement so you can work out how much of a budget you need. The Guardian suggests that ‘the average person will need £9000 a year in addition to the state pension’. Of course, this all depends on what you intend to do when you retire. For example, lots of foreign holidays and luxury purchases will increase the amount you will need in your pot.

 

Other Sources of Income

Having multiple sources of income is always a good idea as you have something to fall back on if one of the streams of income dries up. Look at all the savings and investments you have and when they will become available to you. You may wish to include the Government Pension, which is currently £179.60 per week.

 

Have You Paid Off Your current House?

If you haven’t paid off your mortgage on your own home you will need to think about whether you can afford to invest in a property. If you’re planning to take out a second mortgage calculate your payments to see if they will be manageable.

 

What’s Your Budget?

The cost of investment properties can vary greatly depending on what type of property you choose and whereabouts in the country you buy. It comes as no surprise that properties up North in the UK often sell for a fraction of what they do down South. The type of property you go for will affect the price too. Your budget may not stretch to the property you would like but you may be able to get a smaller one or in a different area. Take the time to research what areas and types of properties you can afford.

 

Location

You will also need to consider your own location in relation to where your investment property will be. If you are doing all of the maintenance and other landlord duties yourself, you may want to consider purchasing something closer so you can access it more easily.

 

How Will You Buy The Investment Property?

Do you intend to pay for your investment property with cash or are you looking to take out a mortgage? If you want to apply for a mortgage then you will need to be sure that you can afford it.

 

Do You Want To Be A Landlord?

Are you prepared to get involved with any issues tenants may have day-to-day? Maintenance issues and chasing rent can take up quite a bit of time. If you love the idea of owning an investment property but don’t want the hassle you could always enlist the help of a property management company to take care of these issues for a fee. The Post Office also has a handy tip for budgeting on only receiving 10 months of rent payments out of 12 to account for any issues, like the property being vacant.

 

Buy-to-Sell

When most of us think about buying an investment property to fund our retirement we often think about the landlord model. However, if you don’t want to be a landlord, or outsource this role to a management company, you could consider buying properties, doing them up, and selling them for a profit.

 

Do Your Research

Buying an investment property can be such an exciting time. Don’t forget to take your time to research all of your options and really think about what will be the best fit for your lifestyle.