Dewhurst & Co's Managing Director heralds Swindon as a formidable Lettings market for landlords and tenants

Mike Dewhurst, Managing Director of Dewhurst & Co, heads one of Swindon’s longest established Lettings Agencies with the aim of sharing his knowledge of the Swindon property market.

Having founded Dewhurst & Co in 1996, Mike Dewhurst boasts more than 20 years experience and has been consistently working closely with landlords throughout, as well as helping tenants to find their dream home.

Mike said: “The Dewhurst philosophy is that ‘quality properties breed quality tenants’, and that principal applies whatever the size of the property. From the very beginning we have always focused on high quality properties and Swindon certainly has plenty of those.

“We currently manage some twenty properties in Swindon’s Old Railway Quarter. They’re mostly one and two bedroom apartments, but heritage properties like these are popular, often with professionals from the adjacent National Trust and English Heritage HQs or people working in the financial sector.”

Since the beginning, Dewhurst & Co have covered a wide range of sectors including residential lettings, new homes, residential estate agency, land and development, and property investments.

Mike is also a Fellow of the National Association of Estate Agents and a member of Association of Residential Letting Agents (ARLA), an independent body that helps protect both landlords and tenants.

Mike adds: "In North Swindon, where Dewhurst’s Taw Hill Lettings Office is located, it’s still possible to rent a lovely four bedroom house for around £950 per calendar month. This is great for local families but also represents a genuine opportunity for commuters from places like Bristol, Newbury and Reading.

“If the key factor for a potential tenant is access to the M4, why rent in one of those expensive locations when you can rent for several hundred pounds cheaper in Swindon?”

The more accessible rents in Swindon are obviously good news for tenants, but that doesn’t make the town a bad place to invest in buy-to-let properties.

Mike said: “Landlords will pay much less for a property in Swindon than other cities and towns in the South West. In some cases – for example, Oxford, Bath and Reading – substantially less. And rents in Swindon are still growing, a 5% yield per annum is more than realistic, and you can also expect capital gains year on year.

“Savvy landlords treat their properties as a business commodity, not a DIY hobby."

Working closely with both existing and new landlords, one of Mike's objectives is to give landlords the best advice during their transactions which include current market rents, capital growth and yields.