This concise but comprehensive guide is for first time - as well as established - landlords. It is divided into sections, each of which is jam-packed with detail and insider tips. Most sections will only take minutes to read (although a few earlier ones take a little more) and each section tells you exactly what you need to do - and why - to get best results. It provides advice on: viewings - how to arrange and conduct them; making a realistic rent assessment before spending any money; knowing what agents should charge and should do; advertising - how to write, where to place, and how to respond to callers - plus using the response to assess tenants; selecting tenants and closing the deal; and, deposits - why they work and how they can fail.It also offers advice on: agreeing inventories, schedules of condition, and property profiles; assured shorthold leases - what they are, the exceptions, and where to buy them for a song; ending tenancies - the easy, and the hard way; the legal responsibilities that no landlord can ignore; particular aspects about houses in multiple occupation; property maintenance - realistic costs and useful advice; and, dealing with the tax man. Each section has tips, skills, time management ideas, and problem solving advice, plus supportive guidance and helpful websites and phone numbers. If you're looking for a bit of straight talking about your investment, or you're sufficiently interested to discover how to increase your own bottom line rather than some agent's, then this is the guide for you. Contents: Lesson 1 Learning the Ropes when Buying Property; Lesson 2 Mock Advertising; Lesson 3 Yields; Lesson 4 Selecting Agents - or not; Lesson 5 Assured Shorthold Leases; Lesson 6 Advertising; Lesson 7 Inventories, Schedules of Condition and Property Profiles; Lesson 8 Viewings; Lesson 9 Selecting Tenants and Tying Up the Deal; Lesson 10 Deposits; Lesson 11 Ending Tenancies; Lesson 12 The Serious Responsibilities; Lesson 13 Houses in Multiple Occupation; Lesson 14 Property Maintenance; Lesson 15 The Tax Man's Take; Index