Interview: Victoria Eley on Property Investment and Supported Living

How would you define your leadership style, if you could choose 3 adjectives? 

Optimistic, Sincere and Flexible.

How is Leadership connected to Social Responsibility? 

I think that it starts with the people at the helm of an organisation, if they are passionate about a certain concept, it will become part of the ethos of the company and anyone who works there will have values that align.

Which were your challenges when you started your career in Property Investment? 

One of my biggest challenges was my self-belief, moving my mindset from ‘can I?’ to ‘I can’. I knew where to find the education, I knew people that would be willing to invest, but I needed to move from fear and uncertainty to positivity and confidence.

What inspired you to launch SBN Property Group? 

To leave a legacy for my children, something that they could use to benefit their future and their children and beyond.

What are Supported Living and Social Housing? 

Supported Living is generally for vulnerable people, that are not in a position to take on a standard tenancy agreement – children in the care sector, adults with learning difficulties, asylum seekers etc.

Social Housing is normally for tenants on benefits that have a standard AST contract on their rented home.

What’s the SBN Property Group Business model? 

SBN predominantly buys and holds. We want to buy properties that we can keep long-term, allowing us to house people in good quality homes, while the business benefits from the rental income and also from the capital appreciation that the property is well known for.

What are the long-term benefits of the property investment projects that you have been working on? 

Financially: Capital Appreciation. House prices are almost 65 times more than they were 50 years ago, giving an average annual rise of 8.7% over that period.

Morally: The longer we hold the houses, the more people we can help!

What are the safety and security policies adopted by SBN Property Group to protect tenants? –

Our tenant’s safety and security are paramount. We ensure that all of our properties are at the very minimum, legally compliant, often going above and beyond what is required.

What are SBN Property Group ESG strategies and ESG goals? 

Environmentally: We ensure that all of our properties are meeting the EPC requirements. We consistently work towards making our properties as environmentally friendly as we can.

Socially: We ensure that our buildings are well maintained, and where we can look for empty properties to rejuvenate and rent out to increase the overall feel and morale of the neighbourhoods we invest in.

Governance: We ensure that we keep thorough records of all of our properties and SOP’s. We work closely with our management companies in order to ensure good tenant engagement and relations.

What are the most effective criteria to evaluate a Sustainable Property Investment? 

Ensure that you have a good knowledge of your strategy and of your investment area and ensure you employ a management agency that understands your values and has a similar ethos for their company.

How does SBN Property Group help investors to optimise their Wealth for Social Impact? 

Our investors all know and understand our mission to help vulnerable people, they all appreciate that their investment assists us in housing more people that are unable to take on their own tenancy.

What are the priorities and needs of Property Investors? 

The majority of property investors that I know are prioritising the elevation of standards in the rental sector and want to provide good quality homes for their tenants to enjoy long term.

We need houses that are suitable for our strategy. We also need the government to ensure that the legislation they bring in allows us to protect our investment should we need to, for example, abolishing all kinds of tenant eviction would be difficult for us if that tenant has stopped paying rent, we still need to pay the mortgage. We should therefore have the right to claim our property back.

What are the most common challenges that property investors face in Wealth Management? 

For newer investors, I would say ensuring that they have the right strategy for them and that the area they intend to invest in is suitable for that strategy. For example, I live in a small rural village where flats or HMO’s would not be a viable strategy, but single buy to lets or flips would work well. For more experienced investors, I would say securing deals that stack well in a buoyant market. Sometimes it’s better to walk away than to invest in a deal.

What’s your definition of Resource Management? 

For me it would be to have systems in place to keep track of a) your properties (ast’s, gas safety certificates, electrical safety certificates, boiler servicing, insurances, mortgage terms etc) and b) your finances (what rent is coming in against what is going out).

And if you are working on a refurb/flip/development, ensuring that you have the materials and labour booked for when you need it and that you are on schedule for both time and money.

What’s your definition of Wealth Management? 

Managing your money and investments sustainably to preserve the ecosystem of the assets.

How is Property Management connected to Social Return on Investment? 

For us, it is assisting those people who cannot manage a mortgage or a standard tenancy agreement. Giving them somewhere safe and warm so that they can find their feet again is, for me, a huge return on investment!

What are the biggest challenges in your community that you have been contributing to overcome? 

In my investment area, it is definitely homelessness, 75% of my portfolio houses homeless people and families in the Northeast of England.

How is Supported Living connected to Mental Health Advocacy and Community Development? 

By taking people off of the streets, it is allowing them to have a base that enables them to move onto more long-term accommodation, increasing their independence and transitioning them back into society or into the facilities that they may need if they have mental health or addiction concerns.

What are the most inspiring and rewarding aspects of being a Supported Living Landlord? 

I love that I am housing people when they need help. The tenants in one of these properties were a mother and her 2 daughters. They had been made homeless just 10 days before Christmas, I delivered them a tree and some decorations, it cost me approximately £30 but made a world of difference to them!

How does SBN Property Group foster the relationship between investors and the communities you serve? 

We ensure that we openly communicate with both our investors and the councils/organisations we work with. We never promise anything that we cannot deliver.

What are the tax breaks for companies or private investors who want to invest in Supported living and Social Housing? 

Tax is an individual thing, and I am not in a position to advise anyone personally. However, generally speaking, supported living contracts are longer than a standard tenancy agreement (2-5 years instead of 6 months) and take away some of the costs involved, including management fees, maintenance costs, tenant find fees and voids, meaning that supported living can often offer a higher level of cashflow than a standard private rental.

What are the most efficient Property Investment Management Systems and Software? 

There are increasingly new software systems that are being launched for property investors, but for me, I am happy with just using Excel spreadsheets.

What are your biggest achievements? 

One of them is definitely running the Virtual London Marathon last year and having raised in excess of £2000 for Dementia UK! But in relation to property, knowing that we have helped hundreds if not thousands of people that were in need of a bed, to have somewhere to sleep that isn’t on the streets.

What would be your best advice to young entrepreneurs? 

To say YES! If an opportunity presents itself, then say yes, especially when you are young and may not have the worry of how it will affect your mortgage or your kids etc.

What are your vision and your biggest goal for 2023?

My goal for 2023 is to increase my portfolio by 30% at least and to secure more contracts with charities or local authorities that are in need of accommodation for their clients.

(And also to run an ultra-marathon and raise more money for Dementia UK!)

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