1. Aim for a 12 per cent yield.
If the monthly rent is £500, add two noughts (£50,000) and try not to pay more than that.

2. Don't be scared to borrow.
Banks, credit cards, friends and family. Always put down the least deposit possible. Preserve your own hard cash. I made my wealth borrowing and reinvesting using other people's money.

3. Never speculate.
If they say they're going to build a train station and prices will double, ignore them! It is not a guarantee. If a property makes money now, it will make money in the future.

4. Don't get emotional over property.
It's about the cash, not the Laura Ashley.

5. Never furnish a property.
The fridge will go wrong; the chairs will get broken and you'll have to fix them.

6. Never refurbish a property.
Don't be swayed by all those magic makeover programmes on TV. Invariably you'll overestimate the selling price and underestimate both the time and cost of refurbishing.

7. Do not attend property seminars.
Invest in a few good books. You'll learn far more and save yourself a couple of grand.

8. Do your research.
Use the net, visit the area, see what the agents are selling and what the letting agents are letting. You can quickly gauge if the figures stack up.

9. Be an individual thinker.
Letting agents know what they can let properties for and know about collecting rents, not about making money. If an agent says you'll never let a property in that area, don't believe him. There is a housing shortage in this country.

10. BUDGET!
Do your sums. Factor in void periods, repairs and non-payment of rent. Always overestimate repairs and underestimate rent collected. Be prudent.

Ajay Ahuja is the founder and owner of propertyhotspots.net, a website giving information the most profitable places to invest in the UK which is updated daily.

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