Let's get stuck straight into these tips.



1. Do your research. If you are buying a property in the hope of becoming a landlord then make sure you have checked the areas rental potential and make sure the types of properties that you are planning on buying are the ones in demand by tenants. If you are planning on flipping the property, make sure you buy a property that is wanted by homebuyers.

2. Treat what people say with a healthy scepticism and don't blindly trust anyone. This includes so called experts. You should try and talk to a few different property professionals. This will help you to get an overall balanced view on things such as:

- What type of property to invest in

- What location

- What type of tenant to aim for

Sometimes it is only after canvassing lots of different opinions that you can really formulate you own strategy with confidence and with solid reasons why you plan to do what you plan to do.

3. Get for comparables for everything. Rental comparables, sales comparables - everything you can. You need to make sure that you are using comparables that are as much like for like as you can possibly find. For example: if you want to rent out a two bedroom flat next to a railway station, then try to get the rental comparison of other two bedroom flats next to the same railway station.

If you choose to use a flat that has two bedrooms and is located 1/2 a mile away from the railway station, then your comparisons maybe way off. ½ a mile can be a long distance if it takes you from the desirable part of town to the rough drug dealing part.

4. Get your finances in place. This is a good thing to do even before you start looking for properties to buy. If your finances are sorted out before you start looking at how to buy investment property, then you will be more likely to be looking with confidence and purpose because you know if you find that bargain property you have the finances already in place to do the deal.

But if you don't have your finances in order there might be doubts in your mind about whether you can finance a deal even if you find it, this in turn may cause you to self sabotage any deal you see even before you put an offer in.

5. Employ the right professionals, whether that means builders, solicitors, contractors, or someone else, skimping on employing qualified people to do a job correctly can cost you a lot more money than you expect. Just because someone is cheap, doesn't mean they can do a good job and just because someone seems expensive doesn't mean that they can do a better job than someone who is cheaper.

The only way to find out for sure is to check references and their qualifications to do the job. Try and speak to real people, preferably face to face, that they have worked with before.

Hopefully by reading this article you now have a clearer understanding on how to buy investment property that will make you a long-term profit, as well as perhaps making you a quick buck now.