A good investment by accident
May 20, 2008
My “internet” persona is DYOR, an acronym for “Do Your Own Research”. My investment approach is based on DYOR, rather than paying some expensive “advisor” for what usually turns out to be lousy advice that loses you money.
However, sometimes you make an investment based on impulse, heart, gut instinct or any other emotive adjective you care to mention.
A case in point for me is a holiday property we bought in the Lake District. The property is a three bed timber lodge that is sited right on the shores of Lake Windermere. If you jump off the decking at the front, you will be in the Lake. We bought this for our own use and with no thought for the investment potential and paid a lot of money. We could sell the lodge now back to the site owners for almost twice the amount just 3 years later, and of course they would sell it on again at a profit. We never rent out the lodge, but just this week got an unsolicited offer to rent whilst we are on holiday elsewhere this Summer. We have now rented out the Lodge for one week for a significant sum.
Now I wish I could claim this fantastic investment return was as a result of DYOR, but it was just by accident. Well not quite. We were in the market for a holiday home for several years before taking the plunge in the Lake District. In fact we placed deposits on two properties in Spain but pulled out of both with our deposits intact. After applying “DYOR” I decided that Spain was not a good investment from a capital gain or rental viewpoint. This was in 2005, when Spanish Property was “booming”. However, I could not see the long term rental potential and even then could see oversupply problems affecting capital values. I did post these thoughts on a few Spanish Property Forums (Polaris World Forum) and got generally ridiculed for buying in the English Lake District rather than the Spanish Costa’s. I must admit it gives me no pleasure to be proved right after all.
So I guess in a way, I did use “DYOR” to buy in the Lakes, albeit indirectly. I used “DYOR” to not buy in Spain.
DYOR
Entry Filed under: Foreign Property, UK Property. Tags: bowness, fallbarrow, Lake District, Lake District Lodge, lake view, rent, windermere.
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1.
Tim Ramsey | May 20, 2008 at 8:52 pm
I recently came accross your blog and have been reading along. I thought I would leave my first comment. I dont know what to say except that I have enjoyed reading. Nice blog.
Tim Ramsey
2.
CharmaineZoe | June 5, 2008 at 9:17 am
Found your blog when doing some research on Fallbarrow as we plan on staying there for a week in September in our tourer. Sounds idyllic, just hoping the weather is kind to us! Sadly I dont think we will have such a good view of the lake as you, your lodge sounds beautifully positioned. I have seen them in the brochure and they do look lovely. I have enjoyed browsing your blog and wish you a better summer than we had last year!
Charmaine
3.
Thuggery | June 20, 2008 at 6:49 am
Somehow i missed the point. Probably lost in translation
Anyway … nice blog to visit.
cheers, Thuggery
4.
Lulu | January 25, 2009 at 12:12 pm
Came across your blog whilst ‘doing my own research’! as we’re looking at buying a business – a whole park full of lodges in lake district, so i was quite encouraged by it, thanx.
Lulu
5.
dyor | May 29, 2009 at 7:38 pm
Hi Lulu
How are things going with buying into the lodge business? Would be interested in helping out in any way.
Regards
DYOR