The Property Unleashed Podcast

Throwback Thursday: What is Rent 2 Rent

• Mark Fitzgerald • Episode 325

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In this classic episode, Mark Fitzgerald unveils the Rent to Rent property strategy—perfect for aspiring entrepreneurs who want to generate income without buying property. This old favourite is packed with practical insights from Mark’s own journey, showing how you can create win-win relationships with landlords and build a successful property business from the ground up.


Here’s what’s covered:

• What Rent to Rent really is and why it works

• Why HMOs are ideal for boosting profits (£100+ per room!)

• How to set up like a pro—business name, logo, and legal essentials

• Finding deals through landlord marketing and letting agent relationships

• Handling tenants, landlords, and property management challenges

• Systems to keep your business efficient and stress-free

• Celebrating small wins while staying consistent


Whether you’re revisiting or hearing this for the first time, this episode is a powerful reminder of how strategic action can transform your property journey.


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Speaker 1:

Welcome to the Property Unleashed podcast, a show about property entrepreneurship and personal development. This show is designed to give you the foundations and building blocks to move forward on your journey and live a more inspired life. Hello and a warm welcome to the Property Unleashed podcast. My name is Mark Fitzgerald and I thank you for joining me today. It has been a whirlwind couple of weeks really setting this podcast up and you know it's a journey that I'm really looking forward to. I'm really looking forward to helping people and hopefully, in a way, trying to inspire people the same way I have been inspired on my journey.

Speaker 1:

So, moving on, I thought I would talk to you today about a little strategy that I've used to great effect, which is called Rent to Rent. Obviously, I spoke about this in the first podcast, which was about my own personal story, so now I thought I'd go into it with a bit more detail. Some of you will know this strategy well and some of you obviously might not have a clue about it whatsoever, so I will explain it to you in its basic form and what rent to rent is. So rent to rent is basically when you take a property from a landlord, you manage the property like a letting agent, would you put your own tenants in there, or, if it's already got tenants, obviously you take on the management of these tenants. You also pay the bills as if you own the property and you cover minor maintenance issues and, in effect, what's in it for the landlord is they get a hassle-free investment so they get a guaranteed rent. They don't have to worry about tenants, they don't have to worry about minor maintenance issues. They can sit back or they can go away and they can be happy in the peace of mind that their property is being looked after, that is being kept to a high standard and the right tenants are in there and being looked after. It's great because as a renter, you get a bit more peace in the sense that you're in charge of the property. Yes, there is responsibility with that, but if you put the systems in place, you put the right people in place and you have a good team around you, it can be fun, to be quite honest with you. There's good times and bad times with anything, but it can be a lot of fun and it can offer you a lot of time, freedom and obviously everybody gets paid. So you know you put the right tenants in that pay you, you make your money, the landlord has you paying him each month or her and everybody's happy. It's a complete and utter win-win. And that's why I think it's a great little strategy to use.

Speaker 1:

It doesn't always work. It's not a strategy that you can go in with everything and make it work. You can't shoehorn a lot of the different property strategies into just working because you want them to, and I mean that's another discussion. But you do see a lot of people, particularly sort of new people, getting into properties that see a lot of different strategies and think, well, I can use that strategy, so I'm just going to pick, you know, rent to rent. Or I'm just going to pick a strategy bit like purchase, lease options, where you buy a property, you don't actually pay for the property yet. You could pay for the property in a few years time, but you take control of the property now as if it's your own. Very much like rent to rent, and you have a guaranteed price that you're going to pay in a few years time to the vendor. The vendor can then go off happy about their business. They get a rent, you're looking after the property as if it's your own and you're going to buy it and it can work really well.

Speaker 1:

But you cannot take a strategy like that into every viewing and every meeting that you have. For me in property, what you need is the toolbox of different strategies. So we all know that if you're looking at property and you're looking at what you can achieve and what you can do in property, there's a lot of different things that can be done. I mean, I'm always learning any new ideas and things change all the time concepts and ways of doing things and it's ingenious because there is no one size fits all. So please don't get one strategy and just think whatever I do now, I'm just going to do this one strategy, learn the strategy, take away from it what you can and then, whatever situation you find yourself in when you're going to view properties, whether it's with agents, whether it's with vendors, you've got the toolbox in your head to be able to say you know, I think this strategy will work at this particular time and I think this strategy might work. Oh no, it's not going to work, because they need their money now. You cannot do a purchase lease option if they need the money now because you're not paying them the money now. You're going to pay the money down the line, so it won't work. You cannot try and force that person to go down that strategy just because it's what you want to do, so do be careful on that front.

Speaker 1:

But anyway, going back to rent to rent, as we say, it's a great strategy to get into, if as long as you do it right. And it is a bit of a job, don't get me wrong. You know it's not as time consuming as a nine to five job, but it is a job. You do need to work at it. It will take effort on your part, but it can be quite a satisfying job as well. And if you're listening to this episode and you've basically come to the podcast just to listen about rent to rent, then you're in the right place, because rent to rent whether it's rent to rent or lettings you know my businesses manage properties exactly how I'd like them to be managed and looked after, and that is one thing I can pride myself on. So back to rent to rent, and starting out in rent to rent normally means you can be quite hands on at first. Now, like I say, this isn't a bad thing, as it's great to learn the ropes before you bring people in to help you run your business, that's if you decide to grow it that big.

Speaker 1:

This strategy can work on all different properties, but I would say for me personally, it works best on HMOs, which is houses of multiple occupation. Now, these houses are where you have maybe five bedrooms, six bedrooms, and you rent houses by the room. So it's basically people share the kitchen, people can share bathrooms and everything. They have their own kitchen cupboard space. It is, per se, their own little flat, if you like. And I mean some HMOs are done up in such a way now that they're so boutique that you know they're better than a lot of hotels that you'd go and stay in, which, of course, is another popular option when doing rent to rent. And people will say I do rent to SA, which is serviced accommodation. So the properties you see on companies like Airbnb, if it's in a city centre or if it's a flat and not an HMO, you can see if you can rent it out by the night or by the weekend as a holiday let to contractors or people working in the area or just holiday makers. I wouldn't try and do both in one property, that's for sure, as you'd end up upsetting people. But both strategies do work and can be very profitable.

Speaker 1:

I went down the HMO route as while you have tenants to deal with, it's less change around and SA can be a real hands-on job. If you certainly don't have all the teams, as you can imagine, you've got to turn rooms around at hotel sort of speed. So if you've got the operation set up for that, then that's great. It'll work really well for you. But I prefer to sort of get tenants in, build up a bit of rapport with the tenants, get to know them on a professional level, but also be able to deal with people or the same people, sort of week in and week out. Other people don't. So what should you be looking at to make on an HMO, on a rent to rent deal? I mean, on average you want to try and make £100 per room. So if you had a five bed HMO you'd make £500 with it fully let, with everything paid, and that's after the landlord's paid, the bills are paid and everything else. So a six bed you'd be looking at 600 quid. Anything over is a Brucey bonus and this is after, as I say, you've paid everything off ie bills, council tax and stuff like that.

Speaker 1:

One thing I would say is I do not recommend listening to a podcast, no matter how good it is, or reading a book and jumping straight into any one of the strategies we talk about on this show, as there are lots and lots of things that can go wrong and, as they say, you don't know what you don't know, so Just be careful on that front. As I said in the last podcast, I chose to go with a credible trainer, as doing everything by the book and making sure I was 100% compliant was very important to me. Also, working with people who have done it before and can show you the way is always a good idea. Just make sure you trust them. You know you will get the value and knowledge you need. You should be looking for a trainer that, under promises and over, delivers and also gives you the right support mechanism going forward.

Speaker 1:

It's all very well learning a strategy over the course of a weekend and then, at the end of the day, when you finally get the deal, about two or three months down the line, they're not to be seen and you're on your own and you've forgotten a lot of what's gone through already. So make sure that you put yourself in the right environment with the right people, and I shall put some show notes in the description here of people that I've used and can basically say, yeah, I've used them and it is a good product, so it's well worth looking at. And I do know for a fact that these guys are all creditable and do offer a lot of free resources, so why not use them? So, if you've done your research and you have a clear understanding of what it is you want to do, what do you have to do next? Well, have you thought about your business name and setup? Have you lined up all the compliances? You need to start trading with them all and be ready to go when you can push the button Now. I don't say, go out there and pay for everything now, but make sure it's all there in the background so that once you can start negotiating and looking to give over contracts, you've basically got all your quotes from your insurances and everything's ready to rock and roll.

Speaker 1:

The one thing I would say is, before you even start marketing, is to register with the ICO and make sure that your data protected, because if you're holding other people's data in any way, shape or form, you need to be a member of the ICO. So you may be wondering where do I start and how do I find these HMO properties? Well, you can use the same strategy that really anybody in property can use to find deals, and that goes for anything that you're looking for. If it's an HMO, then wait for it Marketing letters and talking to agents. I will share with you a few tips on this, as it's not always easy to get started and to be successful.

Speaker 1:

So, first things first, and this can be a lot of fun. First of all, think of a business name. At the end of the day, rent2rent, as a strategy, is a business. You can do it as a sole trader and you can do it in your personal name. But to look professional and be out there which is what you're going to need when you're going out there and talking to landlords you need a good business name. You need your letters, you know. So you need a logo. You're going to need business cards. That's, of course, if we ever use business cards again, who knows what's going to happen but I would recommend you look at a business name, one that's simple. You know you can use your surname if you want to, but just something there so you can call it a business, then obviously you want to register the company, make sure that you can use the name. So you know, go on company house, put the name in, make sure nobody else has got it and that you can actually use it as again, look at a logo. You can even go on a fiber and quite cheaply have logos built. It doesn't have to be perfect, just get something put together. You can always change it later on, but just get something that you look at and you feel proud of. This stuff can be very cheap and even if you set up a website as well, you can get somebody else to do that for you on Fiverr or Artworks. So it is relatively cost effective to get started in this.

Speaker 1:

But you do need to look the part. If you're doing rent, to rent HMO, you will need to understand the safety requirements needed in that area. So contact your local council or download the HMO pack for that area. This will really help. You know what needs to go into an HMO, ie fire doors compliant with the room sizes, everything like that. You want to become the professional of your area, in your niche, so you need to know exactly what the properties need, what the requirements are Some properties with the fire alarms. They can just have integrated ones, whereas other ones need an actual electric panel.

Speaker 1:

You need to know all these things because if you're walking around a property looking to take a deal on and it's not compliant, and you don't know it's not compliant because you've not done your research, you could actually lock yourself into a deal, whereas if the council ever checked they could actually stop you from using it as an HMO, in which case then you could be in a bit of bother. So just make sure you know everything. And also, if you're walking around with a landlord and you know that some sort of legislation's changed that they may not be aware of, you know HMO licenses on properties last five years in most cases, so they might've got this five years ago or be on the last year now. And if you can walk around and say, hang on a minute, when you go for your license renewal, you're going to need to change this, this and this, you'll impress them, you'll help them, and it's all about helping people as much as anything else, and of course, first impressions are everything. If you're helping them, they're going to be more inclined to want to come and work with you. So, again, it'll work really well.

Speaker 1:

So, once you have this set up, you can then look at putting a marketing letter together with your logo on and, obviously, your business name, and look the part. As I say, make sure you're ICO registered to hold people's data, because you're going to need to hold people's data to market letters out to them. So what you need to do here is again contact your local council and ask them for what is called the HMO register. This is public information that any house or property in the area that's probably got five bedrooms or more and it does vary from council to council will have to have an HMO license, and they have to have a register of all of these properties. So you can get access to that and you can actually then send marketing letters to the landlords. Now, don't hound landlords, but just send them out a pleasant marketing letter, basically underlining what you do, what you offer, and if any of them get in contact with you and just say please do not contact me again, respect it and take them off of your list. That's very important. Just remember no doesn't mean no, it just means not now. So even though you're marketing to people and you may not be hearing back from them. There's nothing to say in the future that their situation will not change and they'll get back in contact with you.

Speaker 1:

So what should I say in the letters? Well, it needs to talk about the pains of running and owning an HMO and how you can take the pain away and, obviously, what services you offer. You want this laid out in a clean, simple manner. You know you want to think to yourself if I received this letter, would I call me and to send the letters out I would use a company called Stamp, which is S-T-A-N-N-P. Absolutely brilliant. It costs you about the price of a stamp for them to send a letter out for you and you upload your letter onto their website. You upload the addresses that you want the letters to go to and Stamp will do the rest for you. So highly recommend that as a company, and by, of course, sending out letters, it gets you directly to the landlord and you'll have those contacting you, so it cuts any middleman out. If you use a letting agent, nine times out of ten you've still got the letting agent in the middle, and that can muddy the water in some cases.

Speaker 1:

But, of course, look to work with letting agents and go and talk to them as well. Don't go to the ones you think you know you want to work with first of all. Maybe try the ones outside your target area and practice your craft Because, like anything, you may not be your best at first. So the first couple of times you do this might be a little bit off. But again, make notes on what goes well and what doesn't, so you're not making the same mistakes twice.

Speaker 1:

A tip I was given from an estate agent was when you go into the letting agencies, or if it's a letting agency and a state agency, ask to speak with who's in charge of lettings, and most of the time the person who's after the money lettings and most of the time the person who's after the money ie the commission will come forward first. This could help if you want to get the deal through them. Also, do some research first. Look and find a property or an HMO on their website that you can go in and talk about just as an icebreaker. All of these ideas can be used for different property strategies as well. Be yourself and look the part. Feel comfortable in what you're wearing and know that when you walk in, first impressions are everything when you're talking to a letting agent, you want to make sure they know you're not going to cut them out of any deal. Obviously, it's their job to try and get properties tenanted and manage them. So if you're going in there saying this is what you're going to do, they're going to just shut the door on you because they're going to think that you're going to take all their profit. So you need to make sure that they understand that they're still going to make their commission as well, but they won't have half the work to do so. Again, another win-win. Now, of course, there is a lot more involved in setting up and doing all of this than the fundamentals that we are covering here.

Speaker 1:

I can't really go into all the small detail on this podcast as it would be too long, but if you come over to the Property Unleashed Facebook group and want to ask any questions, then please do, or ask them in an active Rent2Rent Facebook group and see what others have to say, and remember to thank people for answering your questions and helping you. So you need to look at what you want to achieve, how big you want to grow, and that goes for any strategy and any business idea that you might have. Plan it all out at the beginning and have a clear vision. So work out what you need and how you want to get there. This, you know, at the end of the day is achievable, and if you fail to plan, you plan to fail. So make sure that you basically draw out your own roadmap of success. Never jump into things blindly, as they can go wrong very quickly and do realize that things take time. I've seen people get deals quickly and others take longer.

Speaker 1:

This is not a get rich quick idea, so sorry if that's not what you want to hear, but I like to tell you how it is. You can make a good living off this strategy, and more, but you need to be realistic with yourself. I enjoyed the journey when I started out in this and for most of you, I would say that's a massively important thing to do. Yes, it was frustrating and things take longer than you want. We all have nerves and self-doubt, but also the excitement and joy that goes with it as well. So push through the hard times and mark my words there will be frustrating and hard times and enjoy the good moments. Celebrate the small wins. Otherwise, what are you doing this for?

Speaker 1:

So rent to rent is a great strategy and business to be in. If you set yourself up right at the beginning and put together a service that's going to be outstanding for landlords and tenants, you will be on to a real winner. I will go into different aspects of this strategy and other property strategies in later podcasts, and I will also have some guests coming on to share their strategies, ideas and what they've done to create the lives that they wanted to live. But I also just want to tell you about some of the bad or more challenging parts of the strategy that you might not always hear and you normally get to a point where you think, well, nobody told me about this, so let's go bad first. Well, not bad per se, but what can be a challenge? Okay, tenants there I've said it your customers in the business can and will be your biggest challenge. This does not go for rent to rent only. This is the same in all property, so it's a good idea to have a plan for this from the beginning.

Speaker 1:

At the end of the day, we all have good days and bad days and you need to be thinking with a clear head even if you're having a bad day when problems arise. Now, what you think might not be a big deal in that moment may be a big deal to the tenant living in that property. Be understanding and have good lines of communications. Most times, if they are heard and responded to, they understand and they feel appreciated. So make sure all expectations are clear when tenants move in. You know what's a major emergency and what will be dealt with over time. Be proactive on issues and follow up once things have been sorted and fixed to make sure the issues have gone. It's very important to make sure that people think your service is above and beyond what it needs to be.

Speaker 1:

The next thing that's very important is the landlord. When you're going and you're doing viewings and you're negotiating, if you are struggling to work with the landlord at this stage, if you are struggling to work with the landlord at this stage, you really would be mad to lock yourself into a contract for the next three, five, seven years and if you think it will be all right in the long run, I wouldn't take that gamble. Make sure you can work with the people because otherwise your life could be a living hell. I always say the landlord is as important as the property you take on, as I've heard some serious horror stories of them interfering with operations on a day-to-day basis, and really it can all get so so messy very quickly. So make sure it's a landlord that understands the product that you're delivering but also understands that you need to be left to get on and do the job that you're going to do.

Speaker 1:

Next thing is to look at the properties and how old they are, how new they are. You know, have a plan to make the properties as efficient as possible. So look at the heating panels, see if you know if it can be left on all day by the tenants, or if there's a facility on there to switch the heating off at specific times of the day. Also, it's always worth looking at putting potentially a timostat in to stop the properties becoming the tropics, as tenants will just leave the heating on and not worry about switching it off because they're not paying the bills you are. So make sure that you've got this under control. It's a really good, cost effective way. And, as I say, have a look at the Timostats, as they're quite easy to install and will really help you in the long run. Same with light bulbs If you're using light bulbs, make sure they're energy-efficient light bulbs. And if you've got hallway lights coming on, look for the motion sensors to be installed, which will turn the lights off after a few minutes, or if there's no movement in that vicinity.

Speaker 1:

One of my major pet hates is keys, keys, keys, keys. I hate keys. I really do. You will end up with lots and lots of keys. So make sure you have a system that works for you and is easy to manage. So grab yourself a load of key tags from a shop where it's cost effective and make sure that you can colour, coordinate them all and make it nice and easy for yourself. Nothing worse than fumbling around trying to find the right key to the rooms when you need to get into that room quickly because there's an emergency. So, as you can see, the bad isn't really all that bad. It's just a few bits and bobs that you need to be aware of and mindful of.

Speaker 1:

You know what's good about rent to rent well. If the deal stacks up and the numbers are right, and if you can offer a great service and get great cash flow, then both you and the landlord are onto a winner. While it is a business and needs to be ran as one, it is not a nine to five job and will give you more time to do the things that you really want to do. What you'll also find is that you're busier at different times than you are, so to speak, in a lot of different day jobs. Things tend to happen in the evenings and at weekends, when tenants are home more. So set your systems up and make sure you've got cover to help you at these times if need be.

Speaker 1:

If you already own HMOs, then adding a couple of more through a rent-to-rent strategy can just help boost your cash flow and won't hurt you. As you'll already have most of these systems already in place, I would imagine you can start with a lower level of capital investment than in a lot of businesses that you try and start up in the world today. It can be a lot of fun meeting new people, building up relationships and offering good, comfortable, affordable living. So there you have it. This is a great little strategy to use and build a business in property that you can be proud of. As with anything in life, you'll only fail if you give up. If you keep going, if you keep persevering, you will succeed, and it doesn't have to be in property. It can be in whatever you're trying to do, even if you're just trying to lose weight and get fit. If you start now and you persevere and you stick with it, you've got no choice, but the results will happen and the results will come to you, and I truly believe that. So in the future episodes, we are going to talk more about habits to help you succeed, why property is a fantastic platform to use and build wealth, how to quit the day job, and also I will talk to you about how I build wealth at different levels using property and other strategies.

Speaker 1:

So, as we always say in the podcast world, please subscribe so you don't miss the next episode, and if you really enjoyed it, please be kind enough to leave a review. If you didn't enjoy it, please don't. So until the next time, guys, take care and bye for now. Thank you for listening, guys. I hope you've enjoyed this episode. Please subscribe and share the podcast with others, and if you could take a minute to leave the show a review, that would really mean a lot to me as well. Lastly, why not head over to the Property Unleashed Facebook group? And if you do, I'll see you there. Take care and make sure you keep focusing on your vision. Bye for now.