I have moved seven times in the last 10 years. I have even fronted a home moving campaign for an internet provider, such is my notoriety as a serial mover. I have done it not because I love chaos and not because I enjoy unpacking. I have moved because it made economic sense to do so.
By adding value to the properties we bought, we were able, slowly but surely, to move up the property ladder, and eventually, to buy a family home that ticked all the boxes.
At least, that is what I thought I had done, until I started to consider it in a little more detail. When I actually analysed our property progression, I began to see a rather different pattern emerging.
Of the seven moves, four were rentals, and three were purchases. The four rentals were a strategic move to wait for the right point in the property cycle.
As much as my heart almost always rules my head when it comes to bricks and mortar, I did manage to listen to my husband's words of caution, and hold strong when the market was rising too rapidly, in the knowledge that at some point there was bound to be a correction, and that it was that very correction we had to lie in wait for, however long and unsettling the wait.
The purchases were successful because we bought at the right price, aided and abetted by waiting for the right moment in the property cycle, when values were down.
So whilst we did undoubtedly add some uplift by choosing dated properties that needed improvement, the real value was created by buying at the right point in time. Location also comes into it, but fundamentally, finding value is all about buying at the right price (as opposed to selling at the right price), which in itself is a by product of buying at the right moment.
Decor does count, and an attractive interior will help the speed at which the property will sell. It may also create competitive interest, which could shore up the price further. But ultimately, and much to my surprise when I looked at the sums, I have discovered that in property, as with many things in life, timing is everything.
Buy at the right moment and at the right price, because THAT is the moment you create the real value.