Did you know? Thanks to their expertise, BuyerSide is the ideal partner to help and advise you as you buy a building to rent out. An opportunity for us to revisit the recent purchase of two prestigious buildings in Brussels.
Superb building in the Châtelain district
A few months ago, a French client contacted us and asked us to help him find a building intended for letting in Brussels. The only major criterion was that the building had to be located in the Châtelain district, which the client knows well and where he would like to live in a few years’ time. His purpose in making this investment was twofold: to obtain a satisfactory return and to be able to live in one of the units of the building at some point in the future. Thanks to our network, we soon found a building comprising commercial premises on the ground floor and three apartments. This property, located less than 100 metres from place du Châtelain, meets all the criteria. Particularly as the client took an instant liking to the penthouse and its terrace.
Purchased at a gross return, deed signed and sealed, of around 3.5% based on current under-valued rents, the building has great potential. Indeed, once it has been freshened up, the return could increase quickly. It could even be above the average of properties recently sold in this highly coveted micro-district.
Six-apartment building in Etterbeek
Bought by a Belgian private investor, this building intended for letting stands in the district of La Chasse in Etterbeek. It comprises a concrete structure with six one- and two-bedroom apartments and three garages.
Like the Châtelain property, the building was bought on the basis of a return lower than 4% calculated on historically under-valued rents. This means that the owner can easily improve his return, first of all simply by applying the indexation stipulated in the leases and then by charging higher rents as the apartments are relet. The urban planning information provided by the commune for this purchase indicated that certain units were considered to be ‘one-bedroom’ apartments, whereas in fact they had two bedrooms. Each time a purchase is made, the BuyerSide experts go along to the urban planning authorities to compare the actual situation with the legal situation (the various historical building permit plans). As we had not noticed this infringement during our preliminary appraisal, we contacted the urban planning department again to double check. It turned out that this was a simple mistake in the letter they had sent. We were therefore able to obtain an erratum from the commune in which the lawful description of the property corresponded to the actual situation.
These two transactions are extremely sensible investments, both owing to their location in areas where the demand for rented property is high and as they provide an immediate return. With the input of a little time and money, these two rather outstanding buildings will in time offer our clients high potential added value.