i have 3 terraced houses in blackpool and 3 flats in cleveleys area, and enough for 1 or 2 more, bought them all at auction over last 18 months for cash. realising that my poker career was on borrowed time I wanted to start building a steady alternative income (buying at auction is a right buzz btw plus I got some nice prices )
your right chirpy Poker players can't get mortgages which is a bummer because I've got a taste for it now . mortgage laws have changed and you can only borrow in relation to your "taxable income" so I'm hoping to gear up after I've got a full years accounts submitted
fwiw I paid between 46k and 68k for the houses and 144k for the flats. My plan has been targeting high rental yield exclusively. after renovations the houses are returning 9.5% -10% gross return and the flats 12.9%. my total gross income is now £731pw and when it hit that amount a couple of weeks ago I quit pokers as thats enough for me to live reasonably well on.
the biggest surprise was that finding tenants has been the easiest part, I read there was a housing shortage and certainly seems true , in my area anyways .
had a few problems with tradesmen doing them up tbh and I've made some mistakes but all in all have really enjoyed it
fwiw I'm finding it a little strange having having no poker bankroll for the first time since 1999