FREE tenancy agreement
FREE landlord software
First year of trading a success for Belvoir Boston...
After opening the doors to Belvoir Boston just over one year ago proprietor Donna Burrell has met with great success – now, with three members of staff and more than 100 properties on her books Donna recalls her journey...
Question: Why did you want to run a lettings agency?
Answer: “I decided to open the business after returning from working abroad,” says Donna. “I could see a lot of potential in working for myself and knew I didn’t want to work for anyone else.
“I searched for months and months for the right business opportunity and finally decided on the lettings industry. I could see great potential in the lettings market - buy-to-lets have gone crazy over the last couple of years and it’s surprising how many people own two or more houses.
“In fact, the lettings market seemed the recession-proof option. In the current climate more and more people are offering their homes to rent rather than selling them at a loss – renting is really common in Europe and it seems to be taking off over here too.
“Added to this I’d always been interested in property - I’d been both a tenant and landlord myself – and, a bad experience with the agency which let my own house while I was working abroad made me think I could better. I wasn’t impressed with their service at all.”
Question: Why Belvoir?
Answer: “Belvoir seemed the perfect solution for me,” says Donna. “I already knew of the brand, plus the Grantham Central Office isn’t too far from Boston, so they’d be near by if I needed them. I couldn’t believe it when Belvoir Boston was still available and I applied straight away.”
Question: How did you feel when you opened the doors for the first time?
Answer: “Excited and apprehensive at the same time,” remembers Donna. “Strangely enough I was mopping the floor on the Sunday in preparation for Monday’s opening when my first tenant walked in looking for a property to rent. He was definitely the sign of things to come... and, when I did open the doors properly on the Monday I had more than 60 tenant enquires in just one day!
“The flood-gates had opened and tenant after tenant came in. I realised then that there was a massive demand for rental properties in Boston and this meant I could then go to the landlords and tell them that tenants were queuing up. It was a good feeling and a brilliant achievement.”
Question: What’s been your success in the first year?
Answer: “I’m really pleased with how things are going,” she says. “I took on my first employee last December and now have an additional full-time and part-time person too. And, as for properties, I have nearly a 100 fully-managed properties, plus others that are let only.”
Question: What’s the most satisfying thing about the job?
Answer: “I’m managing a lot of properties with a massive amount of responsibility,” says Donna. “After all, I am dealing with people’s biggest assets – their homes. Positive landlord and tenant feedback is very satisfying and it’s great to know you’re doing a good job. I never turn anyone away and always strive to find suitable properties for tenants who are struggling to find properties on their own – it certainly feels good seeing them settle into their new homes.”
Question: What are your hopes for the future?
Answer: “To keep doing more of the same and to keep growing,” she says. “Ideally, maybe in the next year or so, I’d like to take on another office and grow my territory but this will need some extensive research first.
“As for now, Belvoir Boston has grown faster than I ever thought it would,” she continues. “When I opened the doors on November 19, 2007, I didn’t realise what a fantastic journey I was about to embark on. It just goes to show that if you’ve got a dream you should hang on to it - sometimes they really can come true!”
• To find your nearest Belvoir office, visit their website at http://www.belvoirlettings.com/
Donna’s top tips for running a successful lettings agency
* Always remain exceptionally professional
* Always follow through on promises made
* Have an open and friendly attitude
* Try to get involved in community events
* Join the local Chamber of Commerce or Ladies’ Circle to get known on the local business circuit
* Good customer service skills are essential
* Listen to the needs of landlords and tenants and work out a solution together
* Ensure you’re accurate in what you say at all times
* Keep informed - try and find out as much as you can about industry laws and regulations so you can pass key information on to landlords and tenants
* Ask for feedback from landlords and tenants, plus get testimonials too
* Encourage potential landlords and tenants to feel relaxed by setting out your office in an approachable and friendly way
* Aim to be the number one lettings agent in your area
After opening the doors to Belvoir Boston just over one year ago proprietor Donna Burrell has met with great success – now, with three members of staff and more than 100 properties on her books Donna recalls her journey...
Question: Why did you want to run a lettings agency?
Answer: “I decided to open the business after returning from working abroad,” says Donna. “I could see a lot of potential in working for myself and knew I didn’t want to work for anyone else.
“I searched for months and months for the right business opportunity and finally decided on the lettings industry. I could see great potential in the lettings market - buy-to-lets have gone crazy over the last couple of years and it’s surprising how many people own two or more houses.
“In fact, the lettings market seemed the recession-proof option. In the current climate more and more people are offering their homes to rent rather than selling them at a loss – renting is really common in Europe and it seems to be taking off over here too.
“Added to this I’d always been interested in property - I’d been both a tenant and landlord myself – and, a bad experience with the agency which let my own house while I was working abroad made me think I could better. I wasn’t impressed with their service at all.”
Question: Why Belvoir?
Answer: “Belvoir seemed the perfect solution for me,” says Donna. “I already knew of the brand, plus the Grantham Central Office isn’t too far from Boston, so they’d be near by if I needed them. I couldn’t believe it when Belvoir Boston was still available and I applied straight away.”
Question: How did you feel when you opened the doors for the first time?
Answer: “Excited and apprehensive at the same time,” remembers Donna. “Strangely enough I was mopping the floor on the Sunday in preparation for Monday’s opening when my first tenant walked in looking for a property to rent. He was definitely the sign of things to come... and, when I did open the doors properly on the Monday I had more than 60 tenant enquires in just one day!
“The flood-gates had opened and tenant after tenant came in. I realised then that there was a massive demand for rental properties in Boston and this meant I could then go to the landlords and tell them that tenants were queuing up. It was a good feeling and a brilliant achievement.”
Question: What’s been your success in the first year?
Answer: “I’m really pleased with how things are going,” she says. “I took on my first employee last December and now have an additional full-time and part-time person too. And, as for properties, I have nearly a 100 fully-managed properties, plus others that are let only.”
Question: What’s the most satisfying thing about the job?
Answer: “I’m managing a lot of properties with a massive amount of responsibility,” says Donna. “After all, I am dealing with people’s biggest assets – their homes. Positive landlord and tenant feedback is very satisfying and it’s great to know you’re doing a good job. I never turn anyone away and always strive to find suitable properties for tenants who are struggling to find properties on their own – it certainly feels good seeing them settle into their new homes.”
Question: What are your hopes for the future?
Answer: “To keep doing more of the same and to keep growing,” she says. “Ideally, maybe in the next year or so, I’d like to take on another office and grow my territory but this will need some extensive research first.
“As for now, Belvoir Boston has grown faster than I ever thought it would,” she continues. “When I opened the doors on November 19, 2007, I didn’t realise what a fantastic journey I was about to embark on. It just goes to show that if you’ve got a dream you should hang on to it - sometimes they really can come true!”
• To find your nearest Belvoir office, visit their website at http://www.belvoirlettings.com/
Donna’s top tips for running a successful lettings agency
* Always remain exceptionally professional
* Always follow through on promises made
* Have an open and friendly attitude
* Try to get involved in community events
* Join the local Chamber of Commerce or Ladies’ Circle to get known on the local business circuit
* Good customer service skills are essential
* Listen to the needs of landlords and tenants and work out a solution together
* Ensure you’re accurate in what you say at all times
* Keep informed - try and find out as much as you can about industry laws and regulations so you can pass key information on to landlords and tenants
* Ask for feedback from landlords and tenants, plus get testimonials too
* Encourage potential landlords and tenants to feel relaxed by setting out your office in an approachable and friendly way
* Aim to be the number one lettings agent in your area
Posts
1 comment:
Happy first year Belvoir and Donna, well done.
Firas Alnaimi
f.alnaimi@btinternet.com
Post a Comment