Will my property investment be passive?

The simple answer is no. From the simplest BTL to the most complex development, property investment is not passive. I have seen many adverts from training companies suggesting that property can be passive but, having dealt with many landlords over the years and owning my own portfolio, property investment is not passive.

Firstly, to set up the investment takes time and effort. There are tenants to find, ASTs to put in place, lending to arrange … the list goes on. And before any of this happens, you need to have done research to make sure the investment is going to be possible. Moving forward, once you own the asset, there are very rarely tenants who do not have questions or need an issue fixing. Again, this costs time and money.

There are refinancing questions to address and we haven’t even started to talk about the legal or accounting aspects. All in all, property investment is hands on. Each task is not insurmountable and, with a good team around you, the jobs become easier as time progresses. Keeping on top of your investments is key and learning from your mistakes helps. If you are willing to put the work in, property can be very rewarding as it remains one of the only leveraged investments out there.