In honour of Fathers Day on Sunday, we thought we would reshare this incredible story from Akhil and how investing in property is helping his father travel and enjoy his life.
Akhil already owned a number of buy-to-let (BTL) properties across London and was interested in investment opportunities in the North of England for his father. After taking a tour of Leeds with us, he instructed us to source, purchase, refurbish and rent a 2 bedroom property in West Leeds for him.
We spoke to Akhil to find out more about his decision and how it is impacting his father’s life.
The Background
Akhil discovered our company while browsing through Facebook back in 2017. He already owned a number of buy-to-let (BTL) properties across London and was researching investment opportunities for his father.
To put his dad’s money to work, Akhil was initially looking into investing in the south east of England but changed tack when he discovered that the funds required for an investment in Leeds fit perfectly within his dad’s budget. Akhil explained: “It really was a case of the right time and the right place! I’d loosely done a bit of research about investing up North – and everything else that the Lifestyle team told me about Leeds checked out.”
The Why
In the economic crash of the early 90s, Akhil’s parents lost a considerable amount of money. They went through some tough times and since then have worked hard and sacrificed a lot for their 3 children.
Now, his father has reached a stage in his life where he was taking things easier and wanted to travel and enjoy his life. “My dad and I agreed that putting the money into bricks and mortar was a pretty safe bet because it would turn the lump sum into a recurring income stream which he could use to fund his travels.”
By doing the due diligence for his dad, he could invest with the peace of mind that they were working with a professional and experienced team who could take care of the sourcing, purchasing, refurbishing and lettings.
“I don’t want them to have to worry about how they spend their money. My parents have done so much for me that I wanted to repay the favour in some small way“
The Process
Before making the decision to invest, Akhil joined us on a tour of Leeds which gave him a chance to get to know the city, meet the team and learn about our story.
“I could really relate to Lifestyle’s values and work ethic. I got a good feeling about the team – they were honest about the margins and offered a very personal service. They really dug deeper to understand what I was looking to achieve by investing and how their service could help me do that“
Akhil praised the team on the way they handled the entire process, describing it as “honest” and “informed”. He explained: “For me, what was most telling was how the Lifestyle team dealt with any challenges that arose. For example, due to some structural work required, the original refurbishment budget needed to be increased. The team called me immediately with all the information, to ask whether I still wanted to proceed with the purchase. They also offered to find another property as an alternative, without charging me any extra, which was excellent. Great service isn’t necessarily that everything always goes right, but that when things don’t go as planned, they are dealt with efficiently and transparently.”
Most of all, Akhil appreciated that the team understood his detail orientated nature and in turn made sure all the small details were taken care of. “Not once were the team rude, frustrated or difficult to deal with – even when I was impatient,” he remarked.
After the service was completed, there was a small maintenance issue in the property and “Lifestyle fixed it, even though they didn’t have to. It’s things like that that make a big difference” Akhil noted.
The Result
Akhil described Lifestyle’s service as “hard to fault” and was impressed that he got far more than he expected from it. “We’ve had the Leeds property for about four years now and we’ve not had any real issues. We were looking for a place with a good yield and we’ve got that and then some!”
Because of how easy the service was, Akhil has since had the courage to expand his own portfolio outside of London and has also signed up to purchase another 2 properties in Leeds with Lifestyle Property People.
“When my daughter is old enough to understand, I’d like to share the story of how I’ve built my portfolio with her so she knows what her roots are.“ He admitted that it can be scary to invest in a place so far away, and it’s been a journey with lots of learning, but he wants to set a good example for his kids – as his parents have for him. His goal for the future is to set up a charitable organisation and the income he gets from properties will help him to fund them.
“I’m happy to have met the Lifestyle team, and Shiv has impressed and inspired me with the way he runs his business”
3 words or phrases you would use to describe Lifestyle Property People?
We asked Akhil during our call what 3 words he would use to describe Lifestyle Property People. Below is what he came up with: Professional, Patient & Honest
Overall rating for Lifestyle Property People: 10/10
If, like Akhil, you want to create an additional income stream to help secure your families future without the heavy lifting, see how you can work with us here.