We knew it was not going to last forever. After permitting lettings agencies to reopen, the government will gradually ease restrictions through the summer. It won’t be long before we may visit other people’s homes and that means potential student tenants visiting your properties too. Much uncertainty remains but it’s best to start preparing for a return to normal sooner rather than later.

Reflect on Your Decisions

This unique situation led to some businesses making some bad decisions. Look over the period and examine what went well and what did not. Pay attention to those areas that could have led to different outcomes if you had prepared. We’re talking about things like your online visibility, high quality photographs and use of technology like video chat. Some property owners use these as little as possible because they have never found use for such technology. That time is now.

Risk Assessment – for Every Scenario

Many businesses, not just BTL landlords, have been caught short. There has been resistance to things like working from home because they never perceived something like this would happen. Devise a worst-case scenario plan. At the very least, have a system in place in case of a second lockdown. One may still be forthcoming if a second wave appears. Preparing is future proofing your business. Try to do as much as you can remotely, for example.

Update Your Material

If you’re still using the same old grainy photos you took on a smartphone you had 10 years ago, you should update them. Modern students expect bright and airy “Instagrammable” images. At the very least, something of much higher quality than the 1MP BlackBerry or Nokia you had in 2010. Go over your Pads for Students listing and look at it with a mindset of searchable keywords “4-bed student HMO Canterbury”, for example.

Use DownTIME to UpSKILL

Businesses, regulators, marketing pros and online educators are offering free courses right now. From marketing to photography, to building an online presence to sprucing up your website for mobile devices, there is so much out there. Most are taster sessions to encourage you to invest in further training, but there is normally more than enough substance from the free tasters to teach you something new.

Review Your Contracts

You should check this every couple of years or in line with major legislative changes. What was legal before regarding tenant rights or eviction may not be legal now, for example. If you encounter any problems, the presence of illegal clauses could go against you, even with legitimate grievances completely unrelated to the clause no longer allowed. This should be a fluid document, subject to minor tweaks every year, not just something you write once and dust off every year.