Saskia Weaver built up a portfolio of seven rent-to-rents. Then her furnished accommodation became oversubscribed. So, she hit on the idea of passing on the bookings to her fellow academy members rather than losing the business. The 26-year-old also sells deals to investors, all of which adds up to a bulging bank balance and financial freedom.
One booking rakes in £10,000
The cash flow from Saskia’s business varies from month to month, depending on the season. However, one of the houses she controls – a large HMO in Liverpool – is generating around £10,000. Combined with another two rent-to-rents in the city and four more in Reading, her portfolio personally makes her around £7,000 per month, she says.
On top of that Saskia earns between £5,000 and £7,000 each month from charging a commission of 10 per cent on the value of the bookings which she passes on.
The entrepreneur, who has only been in property for two years, also sells two deals a month on average. Her fee for each one is £3,000 which sometimes she will share with a co-sourcer.
It is a generous income for any property investor, let alone someone in their twenties. But then again Saskia never had any doubt she would be successful, knowing her capability.
Before going into property Saskia was a sales consultant, selling face products and body treatments for a medical aesthetic clinic. It was her first sales job, and she became the ‘top sales consultant’ out of about 60 clinics operated by her employer across the UK.
The salary was basic but what appealed to her was that she could top it up through commissions and there was no ceiling.
“I liked the fact that I could control what money I could make,” Saskia recalls.
Her income fluctuated between £2,500 and £3,500 a month – a fraction of what she earns now – but she enjoyed her work.
At the same time the young employee harboured an ambition to own a business but didn’t know what product or service to sell.
What Saskia did know was that she wanted to get her foot on the property ladder. She was saving up to purchase a buy-to-let when she came across Samuel Leeds and changed her mind.
“I saw him on YouTube. I can't even remember the first video it was, but he’s got a good energy about him, and I think that resonates with a lot of people.”
She ‘binge-watched’ more of his videos and then came to one of his £1 crash courses with a friend. Afterwards she enrolled on advanced training.
“I told a few of my friends, and they said, ‘Oh my gosh, you've been scammed. I was like, oh no, please don't say that!”
Then she went to another of Samuel’s events and bought a second course, only to be told by her friends that she had been scammed twice. With these ‘noises in her ear,’ she requested a refund, but was advised to come to the course before making a final decision.
Afterwards she had no hesitation in signing up to the academy. A year later she quit her job, mainly on the back of the money she was making from her rent-to-rents.
‘Samuel was the pat on the shoulder I needed’
It took Saskia six months to secure her first rent-to-rent agreement. She was still learning and admits she was slightly relaxed about getting a deal.
“I wasn't as full force as I should have been. But once that penny dropped I was like wow. You home in on that energy to take the action. After that it just snowballed.”
For Saskia the breakthrough came from crewing at events and immersing herself in the environment, while also benefiting from the advice of the mentors. She received both frank and encouraging comments.
One mentor told her she wasn’t ‘doing enough’ and it gave Saskia a push.
Samuel also motivated her to keep going. “He said: ‘Look you're doing great. He was the pat on the shoulder that I needed.”
Recognising she was ‘not the most organised person,’ Saskia began putting into practice what she had been taught to do, which was to keep track of the calls she was making. That way she could see exactly how much time and effort she was putting in.
“When I did that, that first week was when I secured my first two deals.”
She agrees with her guru that novices will often give up or feel dejected after spending just a few minutes on the telephone to agents and landlords and being rebuffed.
Saskia’s sales background helped her to leapfrog the ‘wannapreneurs’ who spend more time on the theory than the practice. She acquired a business partner and had a clear plan of action which was to generate cash flow through rent-to-rents and deal selling.
It was at the crash course that she was introduced to the rent-to-rent strategy. “It was really good. I resonated with Samuel straight away. He was very likable and for me it was just a no-brainer. He was saying you could be making £700 a month from a property you don't own. I said yes please.”
Liverpool construction boom boosts Saskia’s business
With new building sites springing up all the time across Liverpool, Saskia’s serviced accommodation business is booming.
She has become the go-to person for many companies seeking a temporary place for their contractors to stay in while on jobs.
After a successful run in 2023 when two of her Airbnbs in Liverpool were regularly ‘booked out,’ reservations slowed down slightly towards the end of the year. Then business picked up again as Saskia received a flood of enquiries from construction companies.
The two houses, which she controls, were in such demand that she and her partner took on another rental property. And still firms looking for accommodation were contacting her.
Realising this was a huge opportunity, and not wishing to turn anyone away, she decided to make use of the ‘amazing network’ which the academy provided.
“I know people with property, so I said, yes we can accommodate them.”
Through chat groups Saskia asked her fellow academy members whether any of them had houses in Liverpool because there were contractors needing accommodation there.
“I said I've got long-term bookings, two, three, four months. So, I get an influx of people messaging me and I'm like can you do it for this price because they’re contractors. Their budgets are a bit limited.
“They replied yes we can do that because when it's a long-term booking people prefer that because you're not having the hassle of constant check-ins/checkouts. These guys are still making about £1,000 profit from that.
“Basically, I'm passing them those bookings. I'll just mark up on it or I'll take a 10 per cent fee. It varies depending on the booking.”
She adds: “What I like is there's no liability. I'm not managing it for them but I'm saying, hey I've got this long-term booking. Do you want it?”
The companies Saskia deals with work to a budget of £20 to £40 per night per person. Unsurprisingly, the biggest booking she has received so far is for the largest property in her portfolio, an eight-bed HMO in Liverpool which has nine bathrooms.
“We've got 16 guys in this house and we're getting about £320 a night for that. We’re paying just under £4,000 [to the landlord] with everything includes. So, we're making just over £5,000 profit on one house.”
By making sure she could cater for the demand for accommodation, Saskia now has one company which constantly contacts her when their contractors need somewhere to stay.
“I've got 12 more guys coming down on Friday (August 2024), so I'm finding out who’s got availability and I know it's for the next two to three months minimum.”
It is virtually a passive income for Saskia, and she picks up her cut from giving someone else the trade.
“It’s nice to be able to help people and they are so grateful to me. It's hands-off for them as well. It's a win-win for everyone.”
The arrangement works well too in that the investors avoid having to market their property and pay online travel agency fees.
Saskia ‘aggressively’ marketed her properties in Liverpool by offering discounts for long stays and including her contact details in advertisements for people to check availability.
She also produced tester ads to gauge the response and whether a particular property would work as serviced accommodation.
OpenRent was one platform she used to find properties and she also reached out to companies to bring in business.
“I’d say have you got things going on? At the time they didn't but then they came back to me six months later.”
The importance of sowing seeds was one of the things Saskia learned during her training. It included spending two days at Samuel Leeds’ house while he examined her business plan.
“It was so good. There were 14 of us and he basically tore our businesses to shreds in a good way and asked us what we were doing and how much money we were making. Then he advised us on the best ways to move forward for us and our business.
“He spent a good amount of time with me. It really was so valuable and being able to learn from other people. It's like an intense training and it's nice because it's bespoke to you.
“It's also great if maybe you're not the loudest person in the room. He still goes into each business, and you find out exactly what everyone is doing. There's no hiding.”
The businesswoman believes the academy offers excellent value. She paid £12,000 to join the year-long programme.
“When you think about it, it's not a lot of money. I never saw the academy as 12 months. I saw it as a long game. I never had this time frame of, oh my God I've got one year to make it.”
Saskia saw that she had a lifetime access to valuable knowledge because there was a lot of learning material online in addition to the mentoring.
“I thought these are skills that, worst case, if I didn't utilise it as best as I could now, I know I'm going to come back to it.
“I also thought I would rather put £12,000 into that than just let it sit in the bank and deplete over time. It was a no-brainer for me.”
She has also made many friends on the academy, including the property twins, Gavin and Mitch Vaughan. They picked her up after her car broke down on the way to her Winners on a Wednesday interview for Samuel’s popular YouTube series featuring successful students.
The next step for Saskia is to embark on a buy, refurbish, refinance project. “I've got all these skills. I know how to get great bookings and cash flowing properties. I want to do that for my own properties and build wealth.”
Her academy fee is now paid for, thanks to her earnings from real estate. Sometimes she pinches herself when reflecting that she has three businesses rolled into one.
“I'm proud of myself. I always knew I could do it.”
Saskia’s tips
- The crash course is a taster. Then you need to invest in yourself and surround yourself with people who want the same things.
- Don’t compare yourself to others on the training and don’t rush the journey.
- You don't have to be the person that jumps to quit their job straight away. Just because you don't do that doesn't mean you're not an entrepreneur.
Samuel Leeds verdict
“Saskia has got a really interesting way of making money in property which is unlike anything anyone has ever seen before. She’s a huge asset to the academy members, crewing at events and passing on bookings. Now she’s looking to take on bigger things and I wish her every success.”
