Specialist property investment website – http://www.propertysecrets.net urging investors to capitalise on a forecast house price rise next Spring*. They say that by buying a property now in need of renovation, investors have the potential to make huge profits.

Already the UK property market is seeing a change in emphasis due to the slow down in capital growth - the market is switching from the off-plan deal, where you can make good capital gains before even paying a full deposit, to a refurbishment and renovation market.

Property commentator from the site, Neil Lewis, says: "It has always been our view that Autumn is the most lucrative time to buy a property, but with a re-bound in house prices anticipated in Spring next year, anyone looking to make serious money should look at buying now and renovating.

"Autumn is always a good time to go shopping for a property, as there are so many so-called ‘motivated sellers’. Basically, this means that many properties still on the market in the Autumn have been on the market since the Spring. As the Summer is a quiet time for sales and a bad time to be selling a property you can be pretty sure that the seller who has been in the market for 6 months is keen to sell before Winter.

"Also, the benefit of the renovation/refurbishment route is that you can start with a 20% discount to market price as you can negotiate hard because no one else wants the property. Plus, your rental income nearly always makes your property cash positive. And, finally, you can also re-finance and take out your initial investment.

"This method makes it the only safe way to make a ‘nothing down investment’".

Lewis adds, however, that while many people think property development is easy - just buy a run down property, do it up and sell it on for a profit - this really isn’t the case.

He says. "While buying and renovating a property now means you are sitting on a potential goldmine, many novice property renovators end up making costly and time-consuming mistakes which can not only delay the project but can blow the budget".

For example, obstacles that amateur renovators face include:

• spending money on the wrong improvement
• overlooking problems that prevent the property selling quickly and easily
• overpaying workmen
• losing good workmen due to underpaying
• choosing bad workmen who do a bad job and end up costing more money and running over on time

Until now, for most amateur property renovators, knowing how to avoid these pitfalls is a case of experience. However, http://www.propertysecrets.net have published a guide to successful property renovation – Renovation Secrets - revealing the trade secrets and insider tricks of managing costs and the project so that any profit can be maximised from effective renovation.

From the ‘basic‘ issues (eg what to do about squeaky floorboards; how to negotiate over and above 40% discounts at trade merchants) up to free software that enables you to calculate the true cost of your project (over 260 likely expenses), Renovation Secrets is invaluable for anyone looking to renovate a property.

Suitable for Non-DIYers who want to take control and maximise the profit of their property renovation, and DIYers who want to go further, the book is available in both hard copy and electronically and comes complete with a 21-day money back guarantee.

And the three most common renovation nightmares?

• ripping up the old carpets before sanding the floor boards to discover that part of the floor has been replaced with MDF
• pulling down the plaster and lath only to discover more problems underneath
• a simple electrical fix blows the whole circuit