About this Website
Hello and welcome to As Safe As Houses, where we are focused on stories, news, research, data and opinions surrounding Scotland's Private Rented Sector.
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The site is also the public face of my PhD research into the investment behaviours of landlords and is used to disseminate my research findings, as well as share best practice, advice and guidance.
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About Me
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My name is Andrew Watson and I have worked and consulted in real estate, facilities management, property management and housing for over twenty years.
My interest in the PRS stems from my participation in the sector as a researcher, landlord, letting agent and tenant. I view the PRS as a critical and essential part of Scotland's housing mix, which supports not only transient populations and those who favour the sector, but also those driven towards the PRS by social provision scarcity or affordability challenges in the owner occupier tenure.
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I believe that housing policy should recognise the diversity of landlords and be focused upon enabling and supporting positive landlord investment behaviours. These behaviours should allow landlords to realise their goals, whilst ensuring the stability of PRS investment patterns, the adoption of common standards, the improvement of sector conditions, and the optimisation of the PRS stock.
I love all aspects of property, but I am particularly interested in investment decision making and risk management, which is also my current research focus. I am always happy to chat about the private residential sector in order to share my expertise, but also to learn from others. If you fancy a chat, please drop me an email.
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