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At Cloud Estates, we’re experts in bringing homes to market, finding buyers for properties of all types. However, we can often achieve higher selling prices if homeowners work with us to maximise the appeal of their properties...
View your home like a stranger
The weeks before a property listing goes live represent a unique opportunity. You want buyers to fall in love with your home, and yet it’s easy to spoil those all-important first impressions. Start the process of preparing your home for sale by standing outside and surveying everything with a critical eye. Are there weeds growing out of the paving stones, mould below the windowsills or bald patches across the lawn? Many prospective viewers will do a drive-by before making an appointment, and signs of neglect could deter them from booking an appointment. Red flags include tumbledown sheds, unmowed grass and badly maintained boundary walls/fences.
Once you’re confident your property’s kerb appeal has been maximised, give the interior the same critical treatment, room by room. Clutter is a guaranteed turn-off – shoes beside the front door, cereal boxes on the worktops and toiletries along the bath. The implication is that your home lacks storage – and if you’ve outgrown it, so might potential purchasers. Preparing your home for sale is the ideal time to donate old clothes, toys and books to charity. Streamline the contents of your kitchen cupboards and wardrobes (viewers sometimes open them!) and find a hidden home for paperwork and keys. Your loft, garage and airing cupboard don’t need to be immaculate, but they should look presentable. If they’re not, hire a skip and have a clearout.
Mistletoe and wine
Preparing your home for sale involves tackling those little DIY jobs – oiling door hinges so they don’t squeak, replacing blown lightbulbs and filling holes in the ceiling where you hung mistletoe last Christmas. You might have fond memories of the party when you spilled red wine on the carpet, but a stranger will just see an ugly stain. Far better to tackle these problems pre-emptively. You don’t have to redecorate every room, but the property needs to look fresh and well-maintained.
When your home’s for sale, it’s yours and yet not yours. You need to live in it, but you shouldn’t throw parties or cook whiffy food. A viewer could knock on your door at any time if there’s a board outside, though we’ll always try to arrange official viewings at convenient times. It’s often advisable to box up hobby equipment or collections, minimise the toiletries on display in bathrooms, and pack ornaments ready for moving. Take down any football paraphernalia, too; a Sunderland fan won’t be impressed by a giant poster of St James’s Park, for instance. It won’t cost you a sale, but it creates negative connotations, especially when people are viewing photos online.
If you’d like more advice on preparing your home for sale, give Cloud Estates a call for some personalised property marketing advice.
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High demand in Heaton
Few suburbs of Newcastle hold as much appeal as Heaton. Less than a mile from the city centre, this elegant east end suburb expanded throughout the late 19th and early 20th century. Today, its bay-fronted terraces and inter-war semi-villas are highly sought after – and not just for their classic architecture.
Like neighbouring Jesmond, Heaton has become one of Newcastle’s most prestigious suburbs. Yet unlike Jesmond, Heaton remains comparatively affordable. You can buy a property here with a £120,000 budget and rent an immaculate flat for £800 per calendar month, whereas you’ll pay considerably more for comparable properties on the western side of Jesmond Dene. While High Heaton is synonymous with semi-detached houses, South Heaton (which is usually referred to without the prefix) is more traditional. Elegant bay-fronted terraced houses stretch along grid-pattern roads, broken up by hedges and corner retail units.
A desirable destination
There are good reasons why Heaton is such a sought-after location among homebuyers and tenants. Heaton Park is a unique attraction, where allotments and wooded walks are joined by a play park and a historic windmill. Chillingham Road stretches between the large outlets at Newcastle Shopping Park and the fittingly titled Coast Road; it’s a quick drive east to the golden sands of Tynemouth from here, with Whitley Bay a couple of miles further north along the coast.
Heaton’s public transport links also play a key role in underpinning demand for homes here. The Chillingham Road Metro line has five services an hour departing for South Shields/Whitley Bay, plus another five heading into the city centre. Monument Station is just six minutes away, so it’s unsurprising that Heaton has become hugely popular among city-based commuters, especially as companies introduce hybrid working patterns or encourage a full-time return to the office.
At the heart of the local community
Chillingham Road is the epicentre of the local community, home to various long-standing family-owned businesses and modern eateries. This year alone, the Flight Bar cocktail bar and HIDE bistro have opened in Heaton, reflecting the vibrant night-time economy in this area. A block west of Chillingham Road is Heaton Road, where you’ll find other popular restaurants alongside dog grooming salons, antique furniture stores – and Cloud Estates’ head office.
“There are good reasons why Cloud Estates moved our office to Heaton in early 2022,” says director James Skoyles. “We’re at the heart of the local community, in an area where people are keen to move to or stay once they’ve settled here. Because of all these local amenities, and big employers like the Freeman Hospital, there’s huge demand to live here. It’s often better to register interest with us than wait for a property to reach the open market, by which point it might already have attracted lots of enquiries.”
If you’d like to be among the first to know about new sale and rental homes as they reach the Heaton market, get in touch with us and register your details by clicking here.
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We know that starting a renovation in a rental property is something you might not want to do at all. However, there are several reasons why it is worth it and why the extra lick of paint and new flooring might be worth it.
Firstly, it makes the property easier to rent when it is in better condition. This naturally decreases the possibility that the property is empty, and a tenant is paying you to rent every month. You can also charge a bit more monthly.
Secondly, a property in good condition might attract tenants that are better “quality”, in other words, respect the property and take better care of it and are more likely to pay the rent on time.
Also, a renovation could increase the value of your property, so if you are planning to sell it, that will be easier as well. Many property buyers are more likely to buy a property that is already in good condition rather than having to do the renovation themselves.
So, what kind of things you should be focusing on if you want to do an easy renovation to freshen up the apartment?
1. Use tiles wherever you can as they are more durable and easier to maintain than paint. Dark tiles and dark grouting especially are a good idea because lighter colours can start looking grubby.
2. A lick of paint does the job, but don’t necessarily choose the lightest colour. Choosing a darker colour such as grey is a better option long term because you don’t have to be painting the walls all the time as the minor marks is less visible.
3. Replace the faucets in the bathroom and kitchen makes wonders to give a fresh look.
4. Change the flooring to laminate or add a new dark coloured carpet. Laminate is an excellent and affordable option for rental properties. If a particular area of the flooring is ruined, only that area needs to be replaced, not the whole flooring. Darker carpets are also a good idea as the dirt and marks are not as visible as lighter carpets.
5. Do not choose too vibrant colours or make the property look too personal. The more neutral the property is, the easier it is for tenants to make it unique by adding decorative elements.
Are you not interested in the process of renovation but want to freshen up your property? Or do you still have questions about renovating your property? Give us a call or submit an enquiry form on our website, and we’ll be in touch. Cloud Estates offers experienced and professional property management services, and we will help you with the renovation of your property to make the process hassle-free for you.
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Are you looking for an estate agent to manage and let your properties? Cloud Estates is an award-winning estate agent and specialises in HMO lettings and property management. You can expect experienced and professional service from our friendly team.
Properties in Newcastle are generally more affordable compared to cities such as London, Bristol, and Edinburgh. Newcastle is a student city, and therefore, individuals who wish to rent their property to students will have several tenants waiting for them. Furthermore, a significant increase in Buy-to-Let properties can be seen in several areas in Newcastle.
City Centre
Needless to say that the City Centre of Newcastle is very popular amongst students and professionals who wish to live close to events and activities. Buying a property in the City Centre area costs an average of £273,946. However, it is almost guaranteed that you will be able to rent to property very quickly. The average rent for a 3-bedroom property in the City Centre is £1,450.
Jesmond
Jesmond is an excellent place to invest in. Several people buy properties in Jesmond and convert them into student accommodation or HMO properties to maximise rental profit. Jesmond is a centre of students in Newcastle due to small and trendy shops and restaurants - Osbourne Road is always busy during the day and night. The average property in Jesmond costs, on average, £223,858. The average rent of a 3-bedroom property in Jesmond is around £1,500 per month.
Sandyford
Sandyford is ideally located close to universities and only a short walk away from the City Centre, which attracts many students. You can expect to pay on average £165,044 for a flat in Sandyford, and most of them are Tyneside flats. In Sandyford, a 3-bedroom property costs on average of £1,200 per month for tenants.
It is very close to the famous park Jesmond Dene and has its local restaurants and bars that attract people from around Newcastle. In short, Sandyford is an excellent area to purchase a Buy-to-Let property as students are very eager to move to this area due to its ideal location.
Heaton
Flats in Heaton cost an average of £125,843 and renting 3-bedroom flat costs on average £950 per month. The area has welcomed more and more students within the last years and especially postgraduate students or recently graduated professionals move to Heaton for the cheaper rent compared to City Centre and not to live too close to louder undergraduate student areas such as Sandyford and Jesmond.
The properties in Heaton are beautiful Victorian and Edwardian homes. They are suitable for Buy-to-Let landlords as there will be no shortage of tenants.
Gosforth
In Gosforth, you can expect to pay on average £250,178 for a property. It is a friendly and more quiet area where there is forest and parks close everywhere. Some people even think it is the best place to live in Newcastle.
Gosforth is only a few metro stops and a 10-minute drive away from the City Centre and has all its small coffee shops alongside good schools. Most individuals who live in rental properties in Gosforth are professionals or recently graduated university students. This is because, for many university students, Gosforth is not close enough to universities. Tenants who want to rent a 3-bedroom flat in Gosforth should be prepared to pay on average £1,200 per month.
