Tanzanian born, UK Patriot and US Expert Ollie Booth of usapropertyinvestor.com joins Property Secrets ever growing panel of experts which has also been boosted recently by the return of our Spanish Expert Daniel Talavera.

In this previous interview below, Ollie explains just why he chose to work with the US market above all others.

So Ollie, tell us, why did you start UPI (USA Property Investor)?

In the early days I recognised that certain US markets offered investments not seen in the UK since the mid 90's. I realised finding markets that offered both low entry and high yields was fundamental to any property investor.

The difference in the US markets and say some of the newer Eastern bloc markets is the stability. I had the advantage of having had my own fingers burned in the Latvian market and realised that fast, ambitious moving markets like this leave investors at the mercy of government legislation and other things out of my control - an investor does not want to feel out of control.

The US markets that we target right now such as Buffalo and Detroit offer investors the best scenarios. Low prices, high yields, stable rental markets, established economy. Let's not forget English speaking.

How do you choose which market to invest in, for example we have recently a lot of publicity from you over Detroit, what is driving this?

We research markets that fit our criteria as investors first. A market that has suffered a fall in house prices but still retains its economic wealth in other areas.

A stable rental market - it doesn't need to be completely rental driven. In fact markets that offer the best all round opportunities are those with a healthy balance between owner-occupiers and renters. This is because you have a good exit strategy should you decide to sell there will be local buyers which often means prices will rise steadily.

Detroit specifically is like no other market I have ever seen. The market right now is 100% investor driven and as such prices are low, very low. It is widely documented that Detroit has had its recent economical and social problems, and this isn't to say we are preying on the misery of those unfortunate locals who have lost their homes. The fact is investors are flocking here from all over the world to find bargain homes.

I have always advocated that an investor should invest for cash flow from day 1 and any capital rises in value should be secondary. I believe this because you can only control the first. Capital rises and economic cycles are not within our control.

However, Detroit is widely predicted to rise in value over the next 5 years or so and we share this view. Recent indicators and history tells us that the only way for this market to go is up. In fact, we've never had a property appraised less that 40% higher than our resale price of $40,000. Now that smacks of market confidence!

There seem to be a lot of other companies out there pushing the same services as you, what makes UPI different?

We offer our clients a full package that doesn't stop with just the property. We have reliable property managers, contractors, insurance agents, an accountant who is 1 of only 3 US notary's in the UK. We also have a mortgage facility that no other company can offer. We manage everything for our client's right through to completion and beyond.

Who else is part of the team or are you a one-man band?

In the UK there is just me. My teams live in the areas we invest in. Our goal is to make all our clients'
investments seamless as if it were next door. I believe we have done just that.

We have heard a lot of negative things about property investing, can you allay some of our fears...is it safe?

Property investing is just another investment vehicle. A method of putting your money in to something to get a better return than you would by leaving it in the bank.

As such investors need to be realistic about what they expect. Investments, no matter what they are have to be managed.

The reason property as an investment is looked upon as different from other investment vehicles is because you are buying into physical bricks and mortar, something all of us, as homeowners feel we have a good understanding of which to base our decisions.

The great thing about property investing is that so much of it is within your control. Unlike a traditional pension fund where you leave total strangers of which you've never heard of to manage your money that you pay into each month, property is managed by people that you are paying (your property manager.)

If you are not satisfied you can move. If you don't like your tenant you can evict. It is always important to have control over your investments. The best part is that your property investment, run correctly will pay you each month not the other way around.

And on a final note, what else have you got planned for us over the coming weeks?

Detroit is keeping us all very busy. We have some new relationships in other markets that we are looking to establish.

Our goal wherever we invest in is to be the first group of investors outside of the US to be there offering our clients the best of the best. And if we can't be the first, then we will make sure we're the best.

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