What I’d Do Differently If I Were Starting My BTL Journey Again in 2025

If I could go back and start my Buy-To-Let journey all over again - knowing what I know now and considering how the market has changed - here’s exactly what I’d

do differently (and why):

1. Focus on Fundamentals, Not Headlines In the early days, I spent way too much time reacting to news articles and market noise. In 2025, the media is full of fear-based content - interest rates, regulation changes, etc. But the fundamentals still matter most: demand, location, cash flow, and solid tenant demographics. Yes, it is more challenging than has ever been before but that is exactly why I believe it is going to me more lucrative than ever before. Remember, be greedy while others are scared!

2. Go Deeper, Not Wider Instead of looking across the whole UK, I’d pick ONE investment area and get laser-focused. Learn the streets, the agents, the local rents, the refurb costs. The best deals come from local knowledge, not national Rightmove searches.

3. Start With BRR, Not Vanilla BTL Back when I started, I went straight into turnkey or near turnkey buy-to-lets. In 2025, with capital tighter and lending criteria tougher, I’d start with a Buy Refurb Refinance (BRR) strategy to recycle my cash and build momentum faster - even if it means smaller or more “ugly” properties to start with. In a market like this you have to be sure of your numbers – do not overestimate the ARV (After Refurb Value)! I say this with the caveat - make sure you know what you are doing and have some renovation experience or a mentoring guiding you.

4. Prioritise Power Team Early One of my biggest mistakes was waiting too long to build a team - solicitor, broker, letting agent, builder and a little black book full of local trades (and triplicates as they will let you down.) I thought I had to figure it all out alone. I’d now network hard and build relationships before offering on deals.

5. Run Numbers Based on Today's Interest Rates In 2025, we can’t rely on “rates will go back down soon.” I’d run every deal at 5.5%+ interest rates and make sure the deal still works. Stress-testing from day one avoids painful surprises later.

6. Be ready to roll with the punches. People have been calling time on property investment ever since I have been investing in property and long before. Successful investing though is often observing the masses and doing the opposite. At the end of the day, people will always need somewhere to live – if you can find a way to do that profitably you will prosper. You have to be far more finance and tax savvy than ever before, but those who put in the work and are ready to adapt will absolutely prosper over the coming months and years. 7. Learn the Ropes Before Outsourcing Anything If I could rewind, I’d self-manage my first property before handing it over to a letting agent. Why? Because you can’t manage the manager if you don’t understand the basics yourself. From viewings to vetting tenants to handling maintenance - the hands-on experience is priceless. Once you’ve done it yourself, you’ll outsource more confidently and hold your agents to a higher standard.

8. Just Get Started — There’s Always a Reason Not To Looking back, I could have easily talked myself out of my first deal. But here’s the truth: there is always a reason not to invest. If you wait for perfect conditions, you’ll be waiting forever. Buying and holding - even imperfectly - is far more likely to build your wealth than just holding back. Start small, start smart, but most importantly… start!

Let me know - what would YOU do differently if you were starting again?