Cheap Property for Sale
1,600 properties below €20,000 in 59 countries

Have you recently bought an investment property? Or are you downsizing and debating what to do with your family home now that it is no longer needed as your family has dispersed? Many people in this situation employ the services of a management company who will prepare the property, advertise it, vet perspective renters, collect rent and take are of repairs. Of course they do this in exchange for a percentage of the rental income that the property generates.  This can range from a set yearly nominal fee to a full months rent per calendar year or more.

If you want to get into this business yourself without a management company, it’s important to be savvy and smart.

First of all, get to know all the local laws that apply. If the property needs renovating or remodeling, make sure all the work is above board and that you get the appropriate certificates to show that you are following regulations on everything to do with electrical, fire etc. This could save you some major headaches down the line. If you are changing the use of a property then even more paperwork and certification will be required.

When it comes to the type of renovations you do, also take a look at the neighbourhood to help you decide what should be done. You do not want your property to make the whole street look bad. But you also do not need to install gold-plated taps unless your property is in Beverly Hills. Stay in keeping with the area. If it’s not an essential upgrade and it won’t increase the amount of rent you can charge, think carefully before taking on extra expenses.

When it comes to setting the rent, you can take clues from looking at similar properties in the area. It’s important to get the rent at a level that is appropriate – reasonably affordable but not so cheap that people wonder what’s wrong with the place. Rent is your income. If the property is an apartment in an urban area, you might expect a higher turnover in tenants. With this in mind your forecasts should allow for occupancy for 10 full months per year only. In more rural settings, it can be more difficult to find a tenant but there should be less of a turnover. A good rule of thumb is to allow 12.5% of the annual rental income toward repairs and required upgrades.

Set up easy and clearly defined ways for your tenant to pay their rent.

Online is often simplest and gives you automatic records with your bank. Don’t allow arrears to build up.  You are the landlord and have the right to demand the agreed rent. However, don’t be unreasonable. Communication is key in this situation and, whilst you may need the intervention of some legal entity, this should be a last resort that follows personal engagement. If your tenant goes into arrears and does not engage with you, check the law and begin eviction proceedings as soon as is legal whilst still attempting resolution.

Finding the right tenant is of course crucial to your rental income.

The first thing to do is market the property. Get some good photographs and write a comprehensive description for an online post. You might decide to arrange an afternoon of open house or set up individual showings with interested people. To make sure you’re not wasting your time, you can also put a short questionnaire online. Like this you will have essential information about them before setting up the viewing. Doing this initial stage by email and online is a big time-saver compared to doing it in person or on the phone.

In the US, you will of course check credit ratings of every perspective tenant. A score of 600 or below is considered bad. In Europe, we rely more heavily on references. Look for references from their previous landlord and employer. Get a copy of their legal ID and their national identity number. Meet them personally. Find out how many people they are planning on bringing to live with them. Have a proper legal rental contract for you both to sign, and give them a copy (free templates are available online for this). Have clear rules about smoking and pets, and put this in writing in the contract.

If you personally live nearby your rental property, it’s easier to keep an eye on it and make sure it’s being cared for appropriately.  Of course you should not turn up unannounced or go snooping around when they aren’t home. You must respect their privacy. If you live further away, you might consider employing someone locally. If the property has a garden, having a local gardener to visit regularly will help to keep it looking well without relying on the tenant’s efforts. You will definitely need a local handyman you can call when repairs are required.

It is worth keeping the property in good condition.

In most countries expenses on repairs, cleaning and maintenance are all allowable as claims against your rental income to reduce the amount of tax you will have to pay on your income. So keep good records of these expenses. Your tenant will also appreciate living in a place that is well maintained and where they have a landlord who responds promptly to repair requests.

You can list your real estate on www.listproperty4free.com – start working on your rental income today.

No matter if you are a private seller or a real estate agent you are probably always happy to know another online platform to post real estate listings for free.

In this article, we like to show you quickly some of the features we offer when you list your real estate ad on www.listproperty4free.com.

Can I upload Images with my real estate ad?
Yes – you can upload up to 100 Images with your free ad.

Can I set the location of my real estate ad (Mapping Functionality)?
Yes, this is one of the main features of our website. You can set the location of your property. As a result it will show the location in your ad as well as showing your property on the map on our homepage.

Can I link to outside sites?
No. We currently do not support links to other websites. Rather, if you sign up as a real estate agent you kinda have your own page within our website. This will show like this:

www.listproperty4free.com/properties-by-agent/your-name

Am I required to create an account?
Yes. You will need to create an account to be able to post your real estate ad for free but there are no strings attached. Therefore, you can easily delete your account anytime you wish and all your data will be deleted.

Are there Special Promotion Options?
Yes, you can book extra features with your ad but this is not free of charge. Please see our pricing page for more details.

Can I post an international ad?
Yes, it does not matter where your property is located. It can be anywhere in the world.

What are you waiting for? Post real estate listings for free for thousands of new possible buyers or tenants on www.listproperty4free.com.

We are happy to announce that now you are also able to list  property for rent on our website.

Discover real estate for rent in Europe. You can do so easily by using our map feature to find the location that suits you best: Property for rent in Europe or wherever you want.

Why do we offer to list rental ads now?

Initially we focused just on for sale ads. We were interested especially to make it easier for possible buyers to find cheap properties for sale and to make the “hot spots” visible on the map. Users liked this very much; we can see that our section for properties below 20,000 EUR is still the best visited page from all sections we have available.

After a while some users started to list rental ads as well. As the rental price is usually below 20,000 EUR it started to mess up our cheap property for sale page. This got increasingly annoying for everybody who was looking to buy a bargain.

So, what to do?

After thinking back and forth we decided: Why not keep everybody happy? We keep the rental ads but give them their own space. So, that’s what we did. Now you are able to list or search rental ads as well. It might be still a bit edgy as originally our site was not designed for rental ads but we will see where it goes.

As a conclusion we can only say that we are happy that you like our website and use it. We know it is not perfect but we like to keep you happy and always appreciate your feedback.

When you are preparing your house for sale, you have worked hard to get the place looking pristine.

You have arranged all the ornaments to just the right angle and have the cushions plumped just so. Your house for sale is ready. But this is the time to relax the rules. Let your prospective buyers sit, walk (with shoes on if they whish – if this is not too extreme for you), and set their mug down where they like. If you are hovering in the background with a critical eyebrow-raise and a cloth to wipe up water rings from the coffee table, they may get the impression that you are not quite ready to hand over the keys to your precious home.

Of course, this means that you do have to run around cleaning up and plumping cushions again after each visitor leaves. When the next people arrive, they need to be made feel special and don’t need to be reminded by dirty cups in the sink that they are just one in a string of people (hopefully) coming to view the place.

Another hosting trick that can put you ahead of the game is to learn a little about prospective buyers before they arrive.

This can give you an idea of what to talk about and what might be especially appealing to them about your home or its location. If you learn that their mother tongue is different to yours, you should learn a few words in their language. This really helps a person to feel appreciated. The key ones are obviously “hello”, “thank you” and “goodbye”. If you can manage “Would you like a drink?” that would be very special.

It can also be helpful to know a little bit about their cultural background. Some cultures love to talk and chat, others respect silence. Of course, individuals are individual, but you can be prepared so that you don’t seem disappointed or offended if your efforts at small talk are not reciprocated.

It is challenging to sell at this time of the year but these few simple tips can give you an advantage.

Be ready with the kettle on for tea and hot chocolate or, if you’re feeling really brave, even some mulled wine!

It’s getting cold outside and the children have settled back into a new school year;

perhaps not the optimum time for upping sticks and moving house. Property tends to move slowly as the weather worsens since people feel less inclined to go to viewings and it’s more difficult to see the potential of a beautiful south-facing garden through the dreariness. For many people also a move may involve new schools, a difficult task when the kids are already settled into their existing one. So how can you get an advantage with the people who do want to get unpacked into a new home before Christmas?

When it’s cold outside, you need to make sure your home is warm and cosy on the inside. Have the fire lighting and the heating on.  Place a good mat by the front door to control the wet footprints and an umbrella stand to catch the drips. Make sure you have plenty of soft furnishings to make the rooms feel more warm and inviting. Get a big shaggy rug for the sitting room and an extra throw for the sofa. And as always…. ensure there is something baking in the oven!

When it’s dark outside, get it bright inside.

Let in as much light as possible by opening the blinds. Make sure the windows are clean and the low sunshine really shows up any dirt. Turn on all the lights and get some lamps to brighten up any dark corners. You don’t want people squinting to see inside the storage areas either – some strip lights under the kitchen cabinets and inside closets can really help. Mirrors are also helpful in making a place feel bright and airy. Whilst these things may cost a bit it really can make all the difference and the money spent may seem negligible when compared to the overall sale price of the house.

If you have a garden, it can be difficult to make it shine at this time of the year.

But there is no reason you cannot keep it clean and tidy. Sweep the leaves and clear away any deadwood. If there is snow in your part of the world, make sure the footpath is kept clear. You don’t have anything flowering in the garden this time of year (which you can by getting some winter bedding)? Buy a nice colourful pot with something flowering in it to have by the door to give potential buyers the idea that the garden can be beautiful too.

If you are showing people around the house yourself, it is vital to hone your hosting skills. You need to make people feel relaxed and comfortable, as if it is already their own home. Be ready with drinks and snacks and give them space and freedom to roam around at their own pace.

To be continued tomorrow…

What do you look for in a place to live?

Are you a city mouse or a country mouse? I think location, location, location is definitely near the top of the list no matter your circumstances or situation.

But I was recently made rudely aware of how the rest of the list may differ wildly for different areas not so far from each other.

In Ireland (my home for much of my life), I think people are concerned about light. We love open plan kitchens, garden and a spare bedroom/office. A separate utility room is a handy thing to have too. We want south-facing gardens and lots of windows to bring in light. There is a very popular TV show in Ireland which involves an architect travelling around our country and placing big glass boxes (rooms) onto the back of people’s properties to create a ‘wonderful sense of light and space’. In a country where it is so often cloudy it is not a surprise that we crave light so much. Also we typically prefer to have a games room than a garage, as we are not usually plagued by extreme weather. Generally, we can get much of our list if we are willing to pay as we are not a densely packed country.

We were recently looking at apartments in New York City.

Now this is a completely different beast. The right location is still a priority consideration – how far is the subway? Being close to transport links is essential for city life. But no longer are we thinking about spare beds and TV rooms. The new questions are about washing machines and storage space. It had never occurred to me before spending time in New York that you might have to bring your dirty clothes in a bag down the street to a Laundromat. Or that I’d be using my suitcases that I’ve previously stored empty in the attic as a box to keep my towels in because I don’t have enough space in the cupboards.

Another thing that was new to me was the idea of building amenities. When you have so many people living on top of each other, each building becomes its own mini neighborhood. And many provide their own services. Some offer just a small fitness center. Others have beautiful roof decks with grilling stations, swimming pools, basketball courts and one of the most popular toys– golf simulators. You can potentially also find libraries, poker tables, arcade games, cinema rooms and even a climbing wall. All without leaving your building. Of course you pay handsomely for these facilities. It could be up to $200 per month in prime Manhattan locations for the privilege of being able to scale a climbing wall before breakfast.

To be continued tomorrow…

It’s the first thing I look for when I come into a house or a hotel room – the simple hook.

I like to hang my jacket on a hook. Nobody wants to have piles of coats loaded on the banister or on the bed in the guest room or taking up valuable space on the sofa. And perhaps I’m lazy but I don’t want to have to take out a hangar to hang it up properly every time I come in.

Hooks are also bathroom essentials.

I don’t know how many hotels have the towels beautifully folded or rolled beside the sink. But what do you do with a towel after you’ve dried your hands on it? You can’t roll it back up and put it back where it was. You need a hook! I’ve resorted to hanging towels over the edge of the sink, over the shower rail, on the cupboard door. None of these are satisfactory solutions, however. And who has the time to hang a dressing gown properly inside the wardrobe and take space away from dresses and shirts that need this treatment? A hook is the only answer.

And hooks are not just for coats and towels. They are for keys and aprons, jewelry and mops, utensils and handbags, dog leads and oven gloves. So if you want to make your life a little more organized and your guests a little more comfortable, invest in a few hooks. I stay in a lot of Airbnb’s and I am sure the presence of hooks has been a major contributing factor to a good review for these properties! Anyway, whether you are a house maker or a host it’s a simple upgrade, which will be much appreciated. Go on – give a hook!

Does money really grows on trees? Of course trees are important but could they bring up the value of my property?

It is true that trees come with natural and financial benefits. A tree in front of my home with some well kept landscaping can definitely increase the value of my property. If placed in the right spot to provide shade on my house I can even save on my annual air-conditioning costs.

Did you know that looking at trees reduces stress?

That is also true for possible buyers. They might even imagine themselves hanging up a hammock or a swing for the kids on that tree…

Of course I have to choose the right tree for my property. The soil has to be right for my tree. Also, the proper distance to the house has to be decided, especially if I’m looking at a tree that grows very tall.

Why not plant a tree that is known for its valuable wood?

Like that, whenever I may decide to cut it, it gives me a little extra. If you are from Europe, the first tree that comes to your mind may be the good old fashion oak tree. But they might be a few other gems that could be considered.

I recently stumbled upon the wild service tree (Sorbus torminalis). Apparently it is one of the most valuable hardwoods in Europe. I was surprised as I never heard about it. After making some research I found out that it was named the most beautiful wood in the world at the Paris World Fair in 1900. The wood is as strong as from an oak but lighter in color and more expensive.

If I would have more space in front of my house I would definitely plant one of these.