Buy-to-Let Consultancy

Making an investment in property is an immense undertaking and should never be underestimated. With the marketplace highly pressurised at the current time, it is critical that the right investment is made. IME provide expert advice for those looking to purchase property for the letting market and we are happy to source property for you to fit with your specific brief. Once we have identified what you are looking for, we can provide information and feedback on all aspects of the potential purchases ranging from :

• Estimated time-to-let
• Comparable rents achieved by similar properties over the last 12 months
• Information on amenities in the area of the property i.e. proximity to schools, universities, leisure etc.
• Overview of works required to bring property up to market standards for letting
• Dealing with the purchase on your behalf

Given our market contacts, quite often we can arrange off-market sales and connect landlords who are selling their properties with prospective investors.

Property Marketing Services

We provide full property marketing services, including regular progress updates. We promote properties in a wide range of ways, including :

• The web: Along with our own site, we use a wide range of web sites to showcase your property. These include Letting Web, City Lets, and S1 Homes – these are the main players in the letting portal market in the UK today. The internet provides more than 80% of the viewings that we take and we are acutely aware of the importance of this medium.
• To business: We have great links to business and commercial firms. These all receive a weekly mail-shot from us that details currently available property.
• To the public: Our corporate branding is very eye-catching and this makes our To-Let boards unmistakable. Our office is based in the Fountainbridge area of Edinburgh – close to the city Centre, Financial District and ideal for several of the City’s universities. We therefore get a high number of visitors through our doors every day. Our office has digital advertising and property lists available for visitors to browse through.
• Social Media: IME have embraced the current trend towards social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook. Whenever a property is added to our to-let list, it is immediately featured on our social media sites which in turn are linked to our own website.

Property Management Services

We offer a full range of management services, including:

• Reference checks on all prospective tenants and guarantors.
• Inventory compilation using state-of-the-art software incorporating digital library of photographs
• Liaison with utility companies and council tax departments.
• Preparation of all tenancy documentation.
• Collection of rent and payment to your bank account. Find out about how you receive money from your tenants
• Monthly account statement sent by email.
• Regular property inspections and reports prepared with our state-of-the-art software.
• Property maintenance as required (see below).
• Full final inspection and production of a detailed final-condition survey report.

We are happy to provide an entirely bespoke property management service – just ask! We can also provide a selection of cost-effective let-only, tenant introduction and basic advertising services.
Find out more about why you should use IME to let our your property
Find out more about how IME will market your property

Property Maintenance

IME is unique in the sense that we are able to offer both direct labour and out-sourced maintenance options. Our own operatives are able to deal with general maintenance and reactionary works and for more specialist works we have a skilled bank of tradesmen that we can call on for any and all maintenance issues that may arise. The way we deal with maintenance can be tailored to suit, i.e. if you have your own preferred tradesmen or contracts then we can work with them to your specification.

Renovation Service

Every property will, at some stage, require renovation or refurbishment which can both increase the rental return and reduce the time-to-let of the property. With more than 40 years’ experience in the building trade, we are able to offer a total renovation service ranging from supplying and fitting new bathrooms and kitchens down to interior design and supply of décor and furnishings. We are happy to provide a consultation meeting to see what is needed to bring your property back to life! Our renovation service includes:

• initial assessment of the property to identify renovation requirements or problem areas
• Tailored schedule of works to fit with your specified budget
• Total project management of renovation work from inception to completion
• Regular updates on the progress of the project
• Full break-down of all relevant costs

HMO Licensing

We are experts at dealing with the complex and time-consuming House in Multiple Occupancy (HMO) licensing procedure. As well as being the law, having your property correctly licensed maximizes the potential of your property as HMO compliant properties tend to command a premium rent.
Our HMO Service includes:

• Initial assessment of the property confirming suitability for HMO application
• Completion of all relevant application forms
• Creating required floor plans
• Posting site notices
• Undertaking site visits
• Arranging and managing upgrading works

Guaranteed Rent!

New for 2011 – IME are pleased to announce that we are able to offer guaranteed rental schemes, meaning that you can take all the risk out of renting. Watch this space for more information coming soon…