Absolutely. In fact, we built KOVE specifically for people like you. Most of our clients are short on time and cautious about making costly mistakes. You don’t need to be an expert or have a local network of builders and solicitors; we provide the strategy, the expertise and the vetted team already in place. We guide you through a structured plan built around your specific goals so you can invest with total clarity.

Our minimum starting point is £35,000, but the amount you have available affects both your choice of properties and how long it may take to find a suitable investment.

• From £35,000: Options are very limited and will generally involve an existing tenanted buy-to-let property. Finding one that meets our criteria at this entry point can take longer.
• From £50,000: More options become available, including refurbishment properties and new-build buy-to-let investments.
• From £65,000: Serviced accommodation becomes an option, subject to the property, setup costs and your circumstances.

These are minimum starting budgets, rather than a guarantee that a suitable property will be available at that amount. At the minimum for each route, your choice will be narrower and the search may take longer.

Your budget needs to cover more than the deposit: purchase taxes, KOVE’s fee including VAT, legal and finance costs, and any refurbishment or furnishing required. You should also allow for costs before income starts and retain a reserve for unexpected expenses.

On your call, we’ll explain which routes are realistic for your budget and the full cash requirement for any opportunity you consider.

We source new-build and off-plan opportunities across selected, high-growth locations in the North of England, with refurbishment opportunities focused on the North East.

The locations available depend on current supply and which opportunities meet our investment criteria.

We’ll explain why a particular location is being considered, including rental demand, employment, transport connections and the property’s numbers. The aim is to find an investment that suits your objectives, rather than choose an area simply because it is in the North.

Every property we present is assessed against KOVE’s 12-point investment criteria—an in-depth, data-led process designed to reduce risk and identify opportunities that fit our philosophy: strong rental yields alongside long-term growth potential.

We look beyond the headline price or advertised return. Our assessment considers relevant comparable prices, rental demand, achievable rent, running costs and the total capital required, alongside the location’s employment, infrastructure and transport connections.

We also assess the risks specific to the property. For refurbishments, that includes its condition and proposed works. For new builds and off-plan purchases, it includes the developer, delivery programme, specifications and relevant leasehold costs.

The aim is to select properties that can remain attractive and viable over the long term, considering tenant demand, condition, energy efficiency and potential future requirements—not simply properties with appealing numbers today.

We then consider how the opportunity fits your objectives, budget and preferred level of involvement, and present the supporting evidence and financial assumptions so you can make an informed decision.

Our criteria help manage risk; they cannot eliminate it or guarantee future performance. Independent surveys, mortgage valuations and your solicitor’s legal checks remain important parts of the purchase.

Our core offering includes new-build and off-plan investment properties across the North of England, alongside existing properties requiring refurbishment in the North East.

Opportunities may include apartments or houses, depending on the location and available supply.

We’ll explain the trade-offs between the options. New builds provide a more straightforward investment journey and product, and better energy efficiency, but may come with service charges, lease restrictions for Short Term Lets or construction delays. Existing properties have more complexity (for example, lending challenges, a vendor changing their mind on the sale) and unknowns (e.g. hidden refurbishment costs, future maintenance costs) but may offer scope to improve the asset.

The property and intended rental strategy need to suit your budget, goals and appetite for risk.

Interest rates rise and fall. Property markets go through stronger and weaker periods. That is part of investing, and a long-term strategy needs to account for those cycles.

If your goal is to build wealth over the next 10–20 years, basing your entire decision on what rates or prices might do in the next few months can keep you waiting indefinitely.

Waiting has a cost too: you postpone potential rental income, potential growth and the time your investment has to work towards your goals. That doesn’t mean every property is worth buying today, but waiting for perfect conditions is not a strategy on its own.

The better question is: does this property suit my long-term goals, and can I comfortably afford to hold it through changing conditions?

At KOVE, we assess the purchase price, realistic rental income, borrowing costs and cash reserves alongside your longer-term objectives. The aim is to find an investment you can sustain through market cycles, rather than one that depends on rates falling or prices rising to make it work.

Jez covers this subject in this video.

Start with what you want the investment to achieve: rental income, long-term growth or a combination of both. Then assess which locations offer suitable properties within your budget.

Buying locally can feel familiar, but familiarity alone doesn’t make a property a good investment. Restricting your search to your doorstep could mean accepting a higher purchase price, lower rental yield or fewer opportunities that fit your goals.

It’s also worth asking: what would being nearby allow you to do? If you intend to manage the property yourself, proximity has practical value. If you plan to appoint a managing agent, much of the day-to-day work will be handled locally whether you live ten miles away or two hundred.

With suitable local management and clear reporting, you can retain oversight without needing to live nearby.

KOVE helps you compare opportunities against your budget, realistic rental returns, growth potential and preferred level of involvement. If a local property meets those requirements, proximity is a bonus. If it doesn’t, widening your search could give you a better fit.

The aim is to buy a property that serves your goals—not let your home address determine your investment strategy.

There are more requirements to understand, and it’s sensible to take them seriously.

In England, the main tenancy reforms under the Renters’ Rights Act took effect on 1 May 2026. They include the end of Section 21 “no-fault” evictions, a Nationwide landlord register, a move to assured periodic tenancies and changes to rent increases and possession procedures.

But this is part of a wider shift. Over the last decade, expectations around property standards, landlord responsibilities and transparency have increased. Approaches that rely on informal arrangements or keeping compliance as an afterthought are increasingly unsuitable.

That makes choosing the right property and working with the right professionals more important. Doing everything yourself means taking responsibility for understanding the requirements, keeping up with changes and making sure the right processes are followed.

KOVE’s approach is built around treating property investment professionally: assessing opportunities carefully, budgeting realistically and coordinating with solicitors, brokers, contractors and managing agents who understand their respective responsibilities.

Higher standards and greater transparency are a positive direction for the sector. They support better homes for tenants and reinforce the disciplined approach we encourage investors to take.

Should the changes put you off investing? No. The reasons that attract people to invest in property – stable and strong long term returns, a tangible asset, and a relatively passive income generating venture – remain the same. The thing that’s changed is the way that property investing is carried out, with this professional, high standard, and transparent approach the new norm. 

KOVE supports the sourcing and purchase process and connects you with the relevant professionals. Your appointed specialists advise on and carry out their respective compliance tasks, while you retain your responsibilities as the landlord.

The aim is to build an investment that works within today’s requirements and is prepared for change.

The timeline depends on the property, whether you need a mortgage and whether any building or refurbishment work remains.

Completed new builds: The main stages are legal checks, mortgage, completion, any necessary snagging or furnishing, and tenant placement. Normally 4-5 months from the start of legals to securing a tenant. 

Off-plan properties: The developer’s build programme is an additional part of the timeline. You may exchange contracts well before the property is ready, and completion dates can change. 

Refurbishment properties: The process also includes surveys, agreeing the scope and cost of works, refurbishment and letting setup. Normally 9-10 months from finding suitable properties, legals, mortgage, refurbishment and securing a tenant. 

We’ll explain the expected timeline for the specific opportunity, including when rental income may begin and the costs you need to cover beforehand. Timescales are estimates rather than guaranteed completion dates.

We are so confident in our data-led approach and local market insight that we remove the guesswork for you. If your investment doesn’t make a profit within the first 12 months of ownership, we will provide a full refund of that fee. This ensures our interests are perfectly aligned with yours: we only succeed when your investment delivers. See our terms for full details. 

You can find and buy an investment property yourself. The question is whether you have the time, experience and local connections to assess it properly and take it through to letting.

We estimate that doing this yourself can take 250+ hours, across research, property assessment, viewings, negotiation, progressing the purchase and coordinating any works and letting setup. The actual time depends on the property and your experience.

Alongside that time commitment, the risks of DIY investing include:

• Inaccurate rental valuations: Overestimating achievable rent can make an investment look stronger than it is.
• Limited local connections: Finding dependable agents, contractors and other professionals takes time, particularly when investing away from home.
• Unsuitable viewings: You can spend hours travelling to properties that don’t meet your investment criteria.
• Missed issues: Condition problems, legal restrictions or overlooked costs can become expensive later.
• Unreliable builders: Finding contractors who deliver suitable work at an agreed price and within a realistic timeframe can be challenging.
• Overpaying: Without relevant comparable evidence and negotiation experience, it’s easier to pay more than the property justifies.
• Competing demands: Working full-time can make it difficult to respond promptly when decisions or problems arise.

KOVE brings the process together. Depending on your chosen package and property, our support includes sourcing, investment analysis, negotiation, sales progression and coordination with professionals involved in refurbishment or new-build handover and letting setup.

You’re paying for the assessment and coordination needed to turn a property opportunity into a rental investment. You retain control over the decisions, while we reduce the research and chasing you need to do and help identify issues before you commit.

Before you sign up, we’ll explain exactly what your package includes and which third-party services are charged separately.

No—these are not part of our current sourcing service. Our focus is on simpler, long-term investment models that suit clients who want to build a portfolio alongside their career or business.

HMOs can offer attractive headline income, but they involve more complexity. Planning restrictions apply in some locations, and licensing, conversion works and safety requirements can increase the budget and expertise needed.

In some areas we’ve assessed, competition from existing HMOs also makes us cautious about the rental demand and returns achievable by another shared property.

Ongoing management is more involved too. Multiple tenants and individual room lets mean more tenancy administration, turnover and maintenance coordination. Professional management can reduce your involvement, but that complexity still needs to be managed and paid for.

Social housing deals can also look attractive on paper, but the funding arrangements matter. In our experience, suitable lending has been very limited for some of the provider-leased opportunities we’ve assessed, making a cash purchase the practical route.

That does not fit our preferred approach of using appropriate mortgage finance to spread capital across a portfolio, where it suits the investor’s circumstances. Borrowing carries its own risks, so we assess affordability and reserves carefully.

We focus instead on selected new-build and off-plan properties across the North of England, alongside refurbishment opportunities in the North East—matching the property and strategy to your goals, budget and preferred level of involvement.