The world of real estate investment has changed significantly over the years.
Two decades ago, most buyers still had to read about listings in the newspaper or see them in an agent’s window.
Then technology changed everything, with properties for sale found on specialist real estate websites, which meant buyers from everywhere could consider adding them to their portfolios.
Of course, more potential buyers meant more competition for listings, so the savviest investors had to up-skill to keep themselves ahead of the pack.
One way they did this was to start using a team of experts to help cherry-pick the very best investment grade properties to buy.
Those experts included mortgage brokers so they could secure the best loans, specialist accountants to manage their financial affairs, and a relatively new profession in Australia called buyer’s agents.
Value-add expertise
When I started out as a buyer’s agent and property investment professional, I spent most of my time educating consumers about the profession, because they were only familiar with agents who worked with sellers.
Fast forward to today and there is much more understanding in the marketplace about buyer’s agents, however, there is still some confusion around how they are a value-add in property investment.
You see, some people only see the fee that a buyer’s agent charges and then they walk away.
That’s because they think they can do a better job than a professional who has bought hundreds of investment properties for happy clients.
Sophisticated investors, on the other hand, understand that buyer’s agents – like all professional services – bring knowledge and expertise to the table that they themselves don’t have.
Buyer’s agents work in the best interests of their clients, which includes remaining unemotional and objective about which properties will be the best fit for their portfolios.
Of course, that point of view has the potential to already save tens of thousands of dollars, because a buyer’s agent won’t get caught up in a frenzy of bidding at auction and overpay for a property for example.
Rather, they will simply move onto the next investment grade property that they have carefully selected for their client.
Then they will negotiate on their client’s behalf, which can mean a lower purchase price because they are expert negotiators, whereas everyday buyers and sellers are not.
They may be able to negotiate a lower price or more favourable terms and conditions because they have done their research on the vendor and know which buttons to gently push.
Not only that, buyer’s agents have strong networks of agents which means they often have first dibs on properties that are off market, which a buyer going alone would never have known about.
As well as potentially helping to secure an investment grade property at a discounted price, buyer’s agents manage the purchase from go to whoa, which means a marked reduction in stress for their clients.
The problem is you need more than just a buyers agent!
In today's more complex economic and property environment, you’ll need much more than just a buyer’s agent or even a property strategist to secure your financial future
That's why our team at Metropole offers a 360° holistic approach to ensure you grow, protect and pass on your wealth.
Sure you should be using a buyers agent to implement the strategic plan that we will build together for you, but before you even start looking for a property we customise a solution to meet your specific needs through a time-tested 360° system for acquiring wealth.
Once you have your finance in place, a strategic plan to follow and an asset protection and cash flow protection strategy in place, that's when you start working with a buyers agent.
But be careful...not all buyers agents are the same.
At present there are a lot of people out there calling themselves buyers agents have done a short course, obtained a license without ever working in real estate office and working from home with a mobile phone.
You don't really want to enthusiastic amateur looking after you – do you?
And then, not everyone who calls themselves a buyers agent really represents the purchaser.
Working for you
Over the years, there have been instances of people portraying themselves as buyer’s advocates when in reality they are working for the vendor.
Their role is supposedly to smooth the transaction process, however, since they are being paid by the seller it is clear where their loyalty truly lies.
They often promote their “services” as being free of charge, when there is actually a high learning fee that the buyer will ultimately pay for using them.
On the other hand, professional buyer’s agents or advocates work solely for the buyer and are only paid by the buyer.
Their legal duty is to achieve the very best outcome for their client.
Don't worry about their fee, it's a small price to pay if your buyers agent has years of experience initially in general real estate selling and then in buyers agency and on the ground knowledge.
This is the type of perspective that money can't buy.
You'll find their fee figure pales in comparison to the potential savings made during the price negotiation or from preventing the selection of an under-performing asset that could cost a buyer hundreds of thousands of dollars in lost capital growth in the years ahead.
The fees that buyer’s agents charge can vary from super low to quite high, but like any other professional, those with the most experience are worth every cent.
At the end of the day, buyer’s agents are growing part of the Australian property investment landscape with more and more investors understanding they really can’t afford to not have them on their team.
Now is the time to take action and set yourself for the opportunities that will present themselves as the market moves on
If you're wondering what will happen to property in 2020–2021 you are not alone.
You can trust the team at Metropole to provide you with direction, guidance and results.
In challenging times like we are currently experiencing you need an advisor who takes a holistic approach to your wealth creation and that's what you exactly what you get from the multi award winning team at Metropole.
If you're looking at buying your next home or investment property here's 4 ways we can help you:
- Strategic property advice. - Allow us to build a Strategic Property Plan for you and your family. Planning is bringing the future into the present so you can do something about it now! This will give you direction, results and more certainty. Click here to learn more
- Buyer's agency - As Australia's most trusted buyers’ agents we've been involved in over $3Billion worth of transactions creating wealth for our clients and we can do the same for you. Our on the ground teams in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane bring you years of experience and perspective - that's something money just can't buy. We'll help you find your next home or an investment grade property. Click here to learn how we can help you.
- Wealth Advisory - We can provide you with strategic tailored financial planning and wealth advice. Click here to learn more about we can help you.
- Property Management - Our stress free property management services help you maximise your property returns. Click here to find out why our clients enjoy a vacancy rate considerably below the market average, our tenants stay an average of 3 years and our properties lease 10 days faster than the market average.
