It's that time of year again when around half a million tennis aficionados cram into SW19 to see the world's finest compete in the Wimbledon Championships. But the winnings, which last year amount to a total of £11,282,710, are not the only prize on offer. Local residents stand to make a small fortune from letting out their homes to players and their entourages.

The lack of hotel accommodation in the area means that a place to lay your racket within walking distance of the All England Club will be highly prized between 22nd June and the 5th of July this year, with savvy homeowners living near London's All England Tennis Club pocketing from £500 to £7,000 per week!

So what does this tell us?  Simply that location is a critical factor when letting out a property.  We can't all have major sporting championships on our doorsteps (and most of us wouldn't want it!) but we can make sure we take certain things into account when buying a property purely for investment.

Town centre location, parking, maintenance and up keep all play a part in the decision we make, as well as knowing what your target market is. 

And if you do decide that you would like to make a killing at next year's Wimbledon Championships, you will be in good company!  In fact, you will be in the company of Champions, with Boris Becker having bought a Wimbledon pad this year!

To be seen pottering along the highways and byways of Luton in her Mini Clubman, her trusted Scottie Malcolm at her side, our super sleuthing property rental expert Ms Lucinda Newell is on the case on your behalf!

Following what can only be described as a disastrous Royal Ascot last month (not one winner!!), I was finally beginning to face the fact that I would never make my fortune on those damn nags and had reconciled myself to finding a more constructive (not to mention safe) home for my hard earned.

Having lunch last week with a dear old friend we were debating what that 'constructive home' may be when the subject of buy-to-let within the property sector came up.

She was horrified to hear that I was thinking about further investment in property and assured me that (as she had always suspected) buy to let was a flash in the pan and had not withstood the fluctuations within the housing market leading to repossession and a much vaunted over supply!

On the face of it I can see where she is coming from however, according ARLA (the Association of Residential Letting Agents), Landlords are buying more properties than they are selling for the first time in two years

In the ARLA Members' Survey of the Private Rented Sector for the first quarter of 2009, more than double the number of agents reported that landlords were buying properties than in the previous three months.

And, with the evidence of these figures, speaking for itself, many property experts believe that the buy-to-let market is changing for the better.

This confidence has arisen despite ARLA members reporting an oversupply of properties in the rental market. This oversupply is a result of "reluctant landlords" who are entering the lettings market due to difficulty selling their house or flat.

Ian Potter, operations manager of ARLA, said: "The data shows that there are bargains to be had in the property market at the moment for those with a keen eye. This is substantiates our belief that buy-to-let remains a viable long-term investment vehicle."

The ARLA quarterly survey also showed that rental returns have remained largely consistent in the last three months since the previous report. The return on flats across the country is unchanged at 4.9% whilst houses are down slightly from 4.9% to 4.8%, and with interest rates at an all time low - I know where I would rather have my money!

 All the signs are pointing towards the fact that it is a buyer's market at the moment; it's getting the finance that is the problem!  Eventually though lenders will need to sit up and take notice.

So with my keen eye on hand(!) I took myself off to Lenwell to do a little market research.  Whilst I was there, the lovely Mr Rob Wellstead pulled up the ARLA website for me.  I amongst the pages of vital info for both the amateur and professional Landlord was a guide specifically for Buy to Let investors.  Buy-to-Let is a joint initiative by the Association of Residential Letting Agents (ARLA), and the mortgage lenders. The scheme is designed to help private individuals to invest in property to let without being penalised by mortgage surcharges or paying commercial rates of interest. Mortgage lenders in the Buy-to Let scheme will take account of rental income likely to be achieved from a property.

Clearly this is an important subject, so to make things as simple as possible for you, my dearest readership,(not to mention to speed things up a bit so we can all get to the pub!) I have the ARLA information on the Buy-to-Let market - all you need to do is click on each of the links!

June marked the implementation of our new Terms and Conditions, something we have been working hard to make simpler and both more readable and understandable.

We are delighted to announce that the hard work has paid off and our efforts have been rewarded with the Plain English award for clarity.