Vanessa Warwick and Nick Tadd / 4 Walls and A Ceiling Ltd

Vanessa Warwick and Nick Tadd are consistently one of the most visible couples in the fast moving world of property investment! This dynamic husband and wife duo are primarily Landlords, engaged with property 24/7/365.

Vanessa and Nick have built a very successful, cash-flow rich portfolio and share their knowledge, experience, and contacts with other investors through their company 4 Walls and A Ceiling Ltd.

Vanessa and Nick started investing in property in 2004. They were both working freelance in TV at the time, Nick as a cameraman and Vanessa as a music Director. The couple share a passion for sailing and recognised that in order to one day own their own boat, they needed to start generating passive income streams to support a sailing lifestyle in the future.

“We were walking down the beach in Miami in January 2004” says Vanessa, “when I turned to Nick and said that I would love this lifestyle permanently. Nick replied saying that we needed to take a leaf out of Donald Trump's book and "think big and kick ass" and that was the moment we decided to get involved in property. It was a very natural choice for us as we both believed in it as an investment”. By April 2004, the couple had attended an educational course, undertaken a huge amount of research, and had purchased their first investment property.

Early on in their investment career, Vanessa and Nick realised that there was strength in numbers and that "none of us is as smart as all of us".  They started building a network of like-minded people to share knowledge, deals, and contacts with and through that, 4 Walls and a Ceiling was born.

By December 2006, Vanessa and Nick had generated enough positive cash flow from their portfolio to give up their day jobs in TV. They made the commitment to leave behind the world that they knew, and focus their efforts entirely on property. “We’ve never regretted it for a moment”, they say in stereo.

They now have a portfolio of investment properties in excess of £5 million with significant positive cash flow from the rent.

“Cash flow is king in property” says Nick. “We treat property as a business and we expect to get paid at the end of the month. Too many people focus on capital growth/equity release and these people will be severely affected by the credit crunch and the current falling housing market. Property is a mid to long term investment, not “get rich quick” and anyone entering into it must take this view”.

"Property is a mid to long term investment, not 'get rich quick' and anyone entering into it must take this view”.

- Nick Tadd

Vanessa and Nick also believe passionately that, when it comes to property investment, you need to educate yourself and take personal responsibility for your purchasing decisions. Nick says “Acquiring a property can take one month, but you might then own that property for the next 20 years! You therefore need to understand what it takes to be a Landlord and how to manage your investments so they perform in the best possible way, and give you the greatest returns.

As a Landlord, you become a service provider to your clients (tenants) and you need to understand how to offer excellent service to be successful in this game. A professional and business-like approach minimises your risk, and maximises your returns ... ".

Through leveraging their 4 Walls network, Vanessa and Nick were able to broker deals on more than one unit direct with developers, and achieve a significant discount as a result. “It seemed a natural extension to what we were doing for ourselves, and it benefitted us to broker deals on a bulk purchase so we ourselves got a better deal. We would buy one or two units, and we would pass the other two or three onto our clients, so we all benefitted from the bulk buying power of our little group.  We have found over the last six years that he who shares, wins!".

Vanessa and Nick believe passionately in education and this is factored into their business modus operandi. “We mentor all our clients through each deal so they fully understand it from every angle. We expect them to be ‘hands on’ and pro-active from reservation through to getting the property let out. There is no such thing as an "armchair investor" and we do not entertain this concept at all. It’s your money and you should take responsibility for it! Look at your children or think about your goal in life. That should remind you why you are doing this and why you need to “own” it and not rely on someone else’s word or be sucked in by some slick sales pitch”.

To that end, Nick and Vanessa have been very vocal in calling for regulation within the industry. They have also consulted with the BBC for the past two years on property related matters and regularly speak at property events around the U.K., including their own monthly networking event for their own circle of investors.  They have spoken at over 1,000 property networking events, seminars and workshops.  They have posted hundreds of blogs at Nick Says and posted over 2,000 posts on forums, supporting and advising other investors.

“We do charge an intro fee for an introduction to one of our property deals”, Vanessa says. “The industry standard is 3% of the gross price, but our charge is 1.75% of the net price. Unlike other companies, we do not take any payments up front. We are only paid on completion of a deal. In other words, we are paid on results we deliver for our clients, not promises. We pride ourselves on our ethical approach and the core values of our business are honesty, transparency, ethical practices, and reciprocity. We want clients in a long term relationship with us, and the fact that we are committing our own money to the deal gives our clients a lot of confidence".

The couple believe that in property, it is not a case of “one size fits all”. “We offer a very personal and bespoke service as we believe that property investment should be all about the client” says Nick. “It depends on your own personal financial situation, what your goals are, how much time you have to devote to it, and what your attitude to risk is. That will determine your own personal investment “blue print”. We formulate this with each client before we invite them in on any of our property deals. We ourselves are extremely risk averse, and we encourage our clients to adopt this attitude”.

Pictured below: One of Nick and Vanessa's 4 bed houses in Basingstoke, Hants.

What Vanessa and Nick won't tell you:

Property is a "get rich quick" scheme.

You can become a millionaire in three years or less.

It takes no effort on your part.

You can be an "armchair investor".

You do not need any money to invest in property.

There are no risks involved.

What Vanessa and Nick will tell you:

Property is a mid to long term investment.

A property millionaire is someone with a million pounds of equity, not a million pounds of property.

It does take effort on your part.

As a Landlord, you need to recognise that you are a "service provider" and you need to provide an excellent and professional service to your clients (tenants).

You do need money to invest in property.

There are inherent risks with any type of investment, however education allows you to minimise those risks and manage them accordingly. You are encouraged to take responsibility for your purchasing decisions, understand your investment from every angle, and ensure it takes you one step closer to your goal.

Two years ago, Vanessa and Nick discovered Southern Cyprus as an exciting international investment destination and have since purchased three properties over there. Many of their clients followed in their footsteps and have enjoyed some serious returns on small deposits that have been very highly leveraged in Cyprus. Says Vanessa “It gives our clients a lot of confidence that we are actively investing in the deals we are offering them! We are putting our money where our mouth is, in every sense of the saying. If a problem does arise, it’s in our interest to solve it as we are equally involved in the investment. We also use the bulk buying power of the group to achieve discounts on furniture packs, letting agent commissions, window coverings etc. There is so much strength in numbers and our network benefits us on a daily basis by using the momentum of the group to move ourselves and our clients forwards”. It’s a unique and highly successful business model. “We limit our exposure in any one development or market as that again would be self-defeating to us as we would give ourselves too much competition. Clients find this very reassuring as we will never do anything on a mass scale that could undermine their investments”.

In early 2008, Vanessa was announced as a Finalist in the Bradford and Bingley Female Investor of the Year Awards. She is also the winner of a Cosmopolitan Woman of Achievement Award. Also, White Sand in Camber Sands, where Vanessa and Nick have a holiday let, was awarded the 5* Development of the Year at the prestigious Daily Mail Property Awards '08.

Vanessa and Nick’s passion for sharing, networking, and education has now been taken to a new level. With the launch of 4Walls TV – an on-demand video education channel for property investors - they can spread their message of safe and sensible property investing. “We are embracing Web 2.0” says Nick. “The world is entering a highly exciting new era in business and a big part of this will be based on trust built in on-line communities, contribution, collaboration, and adding value to what other people are doing. Our educational video broadcasts are a key part of building a portfolio of content on the web, along with our many blogs, forum posts, and other on-line contributions which we have contributed over the past three years.  We believe that engaging with the web in an authentic and consistent manner will achieve visibility and credibility that will allow us to become known for our area of expertise.  When it comes to the off-line world, we will never lose that personal touch and will always offer our clients a bespoke service to help them create wealth in property and run their business efficiently. We meet with them individually or at our networking events with the aim of building a long term relationship with them and supporting them in achieving financial freedom through property investment. If we all work together, their success will be our success as there is nothing more powerful or rewarding than a word of mouth recommendation. There is strength in numbers and, together, we can accelerate our results through the group momentum".

In early 2009, Vanessa and Nick started their own property forum called Property Tribes as a focal point for the property community.  The forum is where they share their knowledge, and support, network, and learn from other investors. Additionally, there will be increased business transactions between the members of that community, which benefits the "tribe", so new people join and the value within the network and the benefits of being part of the network increase exponentially as a result.  Vanessa and Nick recognised that "none of us is as smart as all of us" and have incorporated that into their business strategies to leverage other people's knowledge and expertise, and allow others to leverage theirs.  It's all part of recognising that 21st century business is about understanding open, random, collaborative and supportive business practices and future-proofing your business against the next generation as they move from Social Networking to Social Business Networking. It’s about sharing of friends and information, collaboration, and strategic partnerships.  That is the core philosophy of 4wallsandaceiling.com and the main benefit to you for being part of our community.

Connect with Vanessa and Nick on-line on Property Tribes or look out for them at property networking events around the U.K.!.

Nick and Vanessa's Five Pillars of Success:

1.  See (really see) what is possible;
2.  Know specifically what you want to achieve;
3.  Make good choices;
4.  Understand the tactics to get things done and change minds;
5.  Earn the trust and respect of the people around you.

Client testimonial from a recent 4 Walls networking event:

"As always, a most empowering and enlightening event which helps me focus on moving forwards. New faces and ideas. Vanessa and Nick are unique in their ethical approach to the property business. Integrity in this environment is rarer than you think. Thank you for keeping me motivated!". Clara Von Horn

Click here to start exploring 4Walls TV.