- Hardcover: 224 pages
- Publisher: Cassell Illustrated (31 Oct 2004)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 1844032795
- ISBN-13: 978-1844032792
- Product Dimensions: 24.8 x 19.4 x 2.6 cm
- Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 59,258 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- See Complete Table of Contents
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More About the Author
Product Description
Tonic
"Sarah Benny's no-nonsense guide"
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Scottish Daily Record
"Sarah's book offers good advice."
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
144 of 151 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I live in North Cumbria and wanted to buy a house in need of work, do the work and sell for a profit. If I had done so before reading "Property Ladder" I think I would have lost money.
This is a well written, well laid out instruction book telling novices like me what to do and what not to do. The mistakes made by case studies from the TV series are essential reading. I found myself about to do exactly the same and personalise a property which would rule out some potential buyers.
The principles of property development are at stake here. Do not buy the book if you are not sure what colour goes with what or how to install a shower cubicle. These subjects are well documented elsewhere and as the reader will discover, making money out of property does not have to involve doing skilled renovations yourself.
"Property Ladder" is not packed full of unnecessary and unhelpful photographs of finished projects or glamorous shots of the author arranging flower displays. Thankfully the book explains, reminds and excites the reader about how to make a profit if only you keep reading this book and stick to the clearly written rules.
131 of 138 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
The problem with this book and the accompanying tv programme is that it encourages maybe too many people to try their hand at 'developing' property. As another reviewer pointed out, 'developing' is buying land and building on it from scratch - what property ladder is describing is 'property modernisation', nothing more.
There are a lot people out there who know what they are doing, they buy a property for the right price, they know what needs to be done to it for the market sector it is in, and sell the property on for a reasonable profit (note 'reasonable' being about 10% of resale value, dependant on the timescale). The key to all this is in the INITIAL PURCHASE PRICE.
Go to a property auction and for most properties there is always some hopeful who will pay just that little bit too much for a property because he or she thinks there is a killing to be made. That is the problem - too many people want to try this for a living and the net effect is that for those that DO know what they are doing there are far less properties to go around. Net result, a market flooded with amatuerish 'makeover' jobs at inflated prices as people try to recoup what they have unnecessarily spent on their new money making scheme.
The bottom line is - you need to buy sound properties at minimum 25-30 percent below their potential value. By sound properties I mean properties which do not have unseen structural problems, this means you have to know what you are looking at. You then do 5 things:
1. Replace or renew kitchen
2. Replace or renew bathrooms, preferably fully tiled.
3. Replace or renew Fuse board and electric system
4. Replace or renew Heating system
5. repair and repaint everything else including gardens.
(NB 1 and 2 include plumbing)
These books spend far too many column inches on how to 'dress' the property for sale and not enough on how to identify and rectify underlying problems which is where most people fall down and 'go over budget'
I must add to this that (having met her) Sarah Beeny is a very astute and knowledgeable businesswoman who knows her stuff. However please remember that Property ladder is a TV programme which needs ratings - To do this they select the programme applicants that have paid over the odds for problematic properties and either dont know what they are doing or have plans to spend far too much on the modernisation.
What this book should tell you is how not to do it.
There are a lot people out there who know what they are doing, they buy a property for the right price, they know what needs to be done to it for the market sector it is in, and sell the property on for a reasonable profit (note 'reasonable' being about 10% of resale value, dependant on the timescale). The key to all this is in the INITIAL PURCHASE PRICE.
Go to a property auction and for most properties there is always some hopeful who will pay just that little bit too much for a property because he or she thinks there is a killing to be made. That is the problem - too many people want to try this for a living and the net effect is that for those that DO know what they are doing there are far less properties to go around. Net result, a market flooded with amatuerish 'makeover' jobs at inflated prices as people try to recoup what they have unnecessarily spent on their new money making scheme.
The bottom line is - you need to buy sound properties at minimum 25-30 percent below their potential value. By sound properties I mean properties which do not have unseen structural problems, this means you have to know what you are looking at. You then do 5 things:
1. Replace or renew kitchen
2. Replace or renew bathrooms, preferably fully tiled.
3. Replace or renew Fuse board and electric system
4. Replace or renew Heating system
5. repair and repaint everything else including gardens.
(NB 1 and 2 include plumbing)
These books spend far too many column inches on how to 'dress' the property for sale and not enough on how to identify and rectify underlying problems which is where most people fall down and 'go over budget'
I must add to this that (having met her) Sarah Beeny is a very astute and knowledgeable businesswoman who knows her stuff. However please remember that Property ladder is a TV programme which needs ratings - To do this they select the programme applicants that have paid over the odds for problematic properties and either dont know what they are doing or have plans to spend far too much on the modernisation.
What this book should tell you is how not to do it.
33 of 35 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This book has been a great help as I have been interested in buying a house and renovating it. This book has helped me decide that I probably do not want to do this at the moment as I think that it would be too difficult for me to fit in around everything else in my life. The author is clear about what your priorities should be as a property developer as she was in the TV series. The advantage this has over the TV series is that it is less voyueristic.and more practical. I would compare it to some good lecture notes from a fantastic lecture
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Property Ladder Book
I received my Property Ladder Book in record time and it was in nearly new condition. Thank you so much!
Published 7 months ago by Cal'sview
Superficial
I bought this when we were refurbishing our house and it was a waste of money. it didn't even include basics such as the difference between an estimate and a quotation. Read more
Published 7 months ago by Red_Girl
Very disappointing
I had high hopes for this book as I love watching Sarah on telly. However, the impression I got from reading it is that it was purely written to cash in on her TV fame and use her... Read more
Published on 20 Mar 2010 by Polly Rubinstein
Clear, concise starting guide
I will not go to the extent to call it a Bible, I will rename it a true handbook.
Easy access to information. No hype, no fantasies. Read more
Easy access to information. No hype, no fantasies. Read more
Published on 11 Feb 2010 by M. SOSA
Useful
A good book to sit and browse through, useful information, practical and sensible. It's set out well and should guide you through your development if you are prepared to follow... Read more
Published on 5 Nov 2009 by Sunbird
Thank you very much, Sarah!
I would like to say, that since we have seen the program Property Ladder, my husband and I have bought a property, which have made us a very healthy profit. Read more
Published on 23 May 2004 by J. Taneva-Crabbe
Interesting
Maybe not the best guide, more of a transcript of the shows which i absolutely loved. good book from a good series. interesting read at the least.
Published on 29 Mar 2004
Good value for money
This is a very simple book, easy to read, clearly laid out and also cross-referenced well in case you want to follow a theme through the book instead of reading it through straight... Read more
Published on 24 Feb 2004 by a gamer
Dangerous.
While she does make some points about buying a property (in ENGLAND - different sstem in Scotland remember!!), she does little more than articulate what should be common sense. Read more
Published on 30 Jan 2004
Not for the serious developer
A good deal of fun, but targeted at the absolute beginner for development.
Published on 30 Nov 2003
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