The Return: Property & Investment Podcast

Send us a TextThere are so many misunderstandings about women and wealth.Whether you care about this because you want to reduce inequalities of opportunity for yourself or the women you care about, or because you work in this sector and know you need to understand the other half of the population better, there is a huge opportunity for change.I had the chance to quiz three brilliant women in investment, finance and law on everything from practical advice around budgeting and risk, to common misconceptions such as: Pre-nups are just for wealthy men Investing is a man’s world Women are too risk averse to investThis content was created for #InternationalWomensDay, but personally I think it’s important all year round and has never been more relevant. Also, it’s definitely not just for women!Resources:Guest LinkedIn: Ruth McCarthy: Linkedin.com/in/ruthmccarthy/ Elspeth Kinder: Linkedin.com/in/elspethkinder/ Ann-Marie Atkins: Linkedin.com/in/annmariebanks/Host website: annaclareharper.comHost website: spi.capitalHost LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annaclareharper/

Send us a TextThe idea of retiring early is, unsurprisingly, a popular one. But how do you do it?I was delighted to quiz Ann-Marie Atkins, award-winning Financial Planner and Managing Partner at Tilney on this topic.We covered: What kind of investments work, and how you can make them  - including how to make the most of available tax reliefs, property and non-property investments Common mistakes people make, and how you can avoid them How much money you actually need to retire, or take ‘micro retirements’ throughout your careerResources:Guest website: www.tilney.co.ukGuest LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/tilney-group/Guest LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annmariebanks/Host website: www.annaclareharper.com & www.spi.capitalHost LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annaclareharper/

Send us a TextI was delighted to have Lucian Cook, one of the UK property market’s leading commentators and Head of Residential Research at Savills, back on the podcast.We covered: Where prices and rents are rising, and where is best to invest in a post-Covid housing market The most important regulatory changes you need to know about in the coming years, before you buy an investment property How ‘brown discounts’ are affecting investor value, and the impact of sustainability on investor returns The next wave of institutional investment in UK housingResources:Guest LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucian-cook-482010141/Guest Website: https://www.savills.co.uk/Host LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annaclareharper/Host Website: spi.capital & annaclareharper.com

Send us a TextWhat’s changing in the UK rental property market??Zoopla’s Head of Research, Gráinne Gilmore, joined me to discuss what’s really happening in the UK Private Rental Sector.Gráinne was previously Head of Residential Research and Knight Frank, and an award-winning Economics Correspondent for The Times before her role at Zoopla.So, she’s brilliantly placed to help explain the fascinating and complicated dynamics that are affecting the UK rental market.Highlights of this episode include: What’s driving the entrenched ‘two-track market’, London rents fell by 8.3%, whilst non-London rents in the UK rose by 2.3% in 2020 Why Rochdale, Mansfield and Hastings are becoming rental market ‘hotspots’ What’s causing de-urbanisation and the ‘Halo Effect’, and how long it will last What’s next for the UK rental marketResources:Guest website: https://www.zoopla.co.uk/Guest LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/grainnegilmoreZoopla Rental Market Report: https://advantage.zpg.co.uk/insights/rental-market-report/Host website: annaclareharper.comHost website: spi.capitalHost LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annaclareharper/

Send us a TextArtificial Intelligence is transforming how major global funds invest in one of the largest, most resilient asset types: Private Rental Sector housing.I had the privilege of finding out how - speaking to Samantha Kempe, Co-Founder and CIO of ground-breaking Investment Manager Immo Capital. Before this, Samantha cut her teeth managing portfolios at Blackstone, as well as working at PWC and Cushman and Wakefield, so she’s well-versed in both traditional and innovative investment management.Highlights of this episode include: How AI and data can be used to solve the major hurdle funds face investing in Private Rental Sector property How hundreds of data points can be rapidly processed to create valuations, with accurate refurbishment costs, in a fraction of the usual time How AI and humans complement each other, rather than competing for jobs in a unique, and illiquid marketResources:Guest LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/samantha-kempe-3ab42394/Guest website: https://immo.capital/Host LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annaclareharper/Host website: https://annaclareharper.com/ & https://spi.capital/

Send us a TextInvesting in residential property at scaleI was delighted to speak to Cedric Bucher, CEO of Hearthstone Investments, which is the UK’s first specialist residential property fund manager - with Assets under Management of over £280m.They are leading the way in the Private Rental Sector, giving institutional investors access to mainstream family housing and low-rise apartment blocks.Prior to this, Cedric has a brilliant career with leading global consultants, banks and asset managers. So he’s well versed in the financial aspects of property investing, as well as the more practical elements.We first got talking on social media, when I was developing the strategy for my current business, SPI Capital, and I couldn’t resist inviting Cedric to the podcast to share his insights.Highlights of the episode include: Overcoming the challenges of investing in property in 2020 Hot opportunities in the Private Rental Sector Selecting the right kind of funding investor to work with - and what happens if you get it wrong Lessons learned from running a market-leading investment companyResources:Guest website: https://www.hearthstone.co.uk/Guest LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cedric-bucher-8490329/Host website: https://www.annaclareharper.comHost website: https://spi.capitalHost LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annaclareharper/

Send us a TextI'm very excited to share my conversation with Tom Bloxham MBE, one of the best known and loved personalities in the real estate industry and a pioneer of urban regeneration.Tom is the chairman and founder of leading regeneration company Urban Splash, which has received 419 (!) awards to date for architecture, design and business success.He has a reputation as ‘the property developer who makes property development socially acceptable’, and the best accolade I’ve heard to date: a portrait in the National Portrait Gallery.Highlights of our conversation include: How to handle challenges, changes and cycles in the property market Changing mean streets to green streets - lessons learned from spearheading unprecedented changes to our urban landscape How to prepare for the future as a property developer/investor Living well by design - the ethos of Urban Splash investmentsListen in to hear more.Resources:Guest website: https://www.urbansplash.co.uk/Guest LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tom-bloxham-26055413/Guest Twitter @TomBloxhamMBEhttps://annaclareharper.com/http://spi.capital/https://www.linkedin.com/in/annaclareharper/

Send us a TextWhat’s changing in the UK rental market?Zoopla’s Head of Research, Gráinne Gilmore, joined me to discuss what’s really happening in the UK Private Rental Sector.Gráinne was previously Head of Residential Research at Knight Frank, and an award-winning Economics Correspondent for The Times before her role at Zoopla.So, she’s brilliantly placed to help explain the fascinating and complicated dynamics that are affecting the UK rental market.Highlights of this episode include: What’s driving the entrenched ‘two-speed market’, with UK rent growth of +1.7% vs -5.2% in London’s rental market Tenant demand 25% higher than last year overall - with particular demand for properties with gardens, parking, garages, balconies and ‘pets allowed’, and a shift away from office-driven cities such as Coventry and Reading What next for the UK rental market, in a context of reduced investment activity, muted earnings growth and limited affordability for many first time buyersResources:Guest website: https://www.zoopla.co.uk/Guest LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/grainnegilmoreZoopla Rental Market Report: https://advantage.zpg.co.uk/insights/rental-market-report/Host website: annaclareharper.comHost website: spi.capitalHost LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annaclareharper/

Send us a TextTransparency, liquidity, and listed real estateI had a fascinating discussion with Richard Croft, Co-Founder and Chairman of leading investment group, M7 and David Delaney, CEO of new property stock exchange IPSX about their first single real estate asset Initial Public Offering (IPO).Richard and David have exceptional credentials in real estate and finance, with years of experience, and billions of transactions under their belts. Richard is the Executive Chairman and co-founder of the M7 Real Estate group, and has been involved in over €8 billion of transactions across the UK and Europe during his 26 year career in real estate, founded and sold a European real estate fund management business, and is a Non-Executive Director of IPSX.David is IPSX’s Group CEO. His previous experience includes managing $1bn book of business at Thomson Reuters as Head of Strategic Clients and Solutions, and 25 years at Credit Suisse (where he became Head of Fixed Income Sales for interest rate products) and Barclays Bank.Richard and David share a deep frustration with the issues that prevent investors from selecting and investing in assets for themselves, the lack of transparency in the listed real estate market, and the lack of liquidity available for many real estate assets.Their current mission is to solve these issues, through an unprecedented single asset listing of Mailbox REIT on IPSX. So, will it work?Highlights of the episode include: What liquidity is really worth to investors The high perceived risk of anything new The problems investors face with open-ended and closed-ended real estate funds Whether investors really value choice and democracy in investingResources:Guest websites: www.themailboxreit.com / www.ipsx.com / www.m7re.euAnna’s website: www.annaclareharper.com & www.spi.capitalAnna’s LinkedIn page:https://www.linkedin.com/in/annaclareharper/

Send us a TextIt’s not glamorous.Yet building management has the potential to make or break both investor returns and customer satisfaction.Historically, it’s been rare for investors to know (and perhaps, to care) how their building can be managed better. Until now.Ryan Collier has specialised in the management of large and complex buildings for 10 years, and has overseen tens of thousands of homes.He and his team at leading specialist block managers, Pod Management, provide residential estate and block management services - and comprehensive data analytics - for clients such as Bellway homes, Berkeley Homes and Tipi (Quintain) across some 9,000 homes (contracted and pipeline).We discussed: How data analytics can be used to reduce investor costs and improve customer service for tenants - from optimising postroom staffing to 24 hour ‘between tenancy’ turnarounds The myth that new buildings cost less to run - since maintenance is about people and the quality of the building, not its age The myth that more data means better results - it’s not the data, but how you use it! Optimising building lifecycle costs - and the shocking cost of cheap taps, lifts and gatesResources:Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/pod-management/Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annaclareharper/Instagram: @podmanagementwww.podmanagement.co.ukwww.annaclareharper.com