How long does it take to buy a house with a buyers agent (Brisbane)

[housebuyer20]

Hi there,
I am new to this forum! I recently hired a BA (Andrew Allen) due to all the good reviews I have heard. So far it has been 3 weeks and we haven't been shown any houses at all.

I discussed what we wanted in a house but it seems he has got it all wrong and perhaps is looking for something we are not asking for.

Can someone please tell me how a buyers agent is meant to work because so far I've paid 2.5K and I've not seen any houses and I have no idea about what is happening. He has spent the last 2 weeks saying he will prepare an email. When I received the email it said that he is still talking to real estate agents.

Is there anyway to get a refund if they are not doing anything for you at all?? I feel like I've wasted a lot of money. and I am NOT IMPRESSED.

We want to buy ASAP - how long is it meant to take to see houses from a BA??

 

[D.T.]

Depends how busy they are. Depends how often properties that fit your criteria hit the market

 

[nhg]

There are a lot of people investing up that way now, it isn't just him looking at property.

If and when something hits the market, you will need to be ready.

Typically takes me months and months to find something worth investing in, and when I see it it takes 20 minutes to do my DD and put a deposit on it.

 

[Rolf Latham]

We do work with many buyers agents around the country with stock prices of sub 200 k to mill plus

It's pretty rare that a ba has stock on hand so to say, unless the brief is wide open.

4 to 8 weeks is not uncommon.

Additionally, about 1 in 5 don't proceed at all, or end up buying different stock in a different city altogether.

Ta

Rolf

 

[Jamie M]

Hiya

It's not uncommon for it to take a while - especially in a market where there's a lot of competition.

Good BA's are very selective in the properties they recommend too - and obviously they can't control supply.

Cheers

Jamie

 

[Peter_Tersteeg]

I purchased a property last year through Andrew. Yes, it did take a long time but this was because neither Andrew nor we were not prepared to compromise on getting a good value property.

In the end it took about 4-5 months to actually make a successful offer and it was several weeks before we started looking at actual properties. We are extremely happy with the result however and believe we got excellent value for money (both in Andrews service and the property purchase).

I'm also aware that Andrew is extremely busy and has been turning inquiries away. The Brisbane market has gone from warm to hot over the last 12 months. It simply may be difficult to find a property that meets your criteria.

I'd suggest that you hang in there. You're working with an excellent BA and in my opinion Andrews clients are lucky to have him there to help.

 

[housebuyer20]

Thankyou so much for your responses! This is the first time I've done this so I'm not sure. I'm relieved to hear that it is normal so I will stop panicking.

I wasn't sure if I had just been forgotten or not! I will let you know how I go then. We recently bought a property but we were looking through ads every day and we just don't have the time to do this anymore!

 

[Jacque]

We typically take anywhere between 8-14 days to return to new clients with a first update or report during their search, as it takes time to saturate all the current listings on the market, assess them, arrange inspections, contact (email and call) agents in the search area (eg: one suburb can have anywhere between 10-30 agencies working it, so if your search area is large it usually involves significantly more time) and then arrange inspections for clients. Though you may not hear anything in the first 1-2 weeks it certainly doesn't mean we're not looking and doing our homework

Keep in mind, too, that a BA is only going to be showing you the shortlisted or "pick of the bunch" properties - not wasting your time is part of the reason why you pay us to waste ours, so to speak... and, as others have already mentioned, sometimes this involves waiting for or weeding out the right listings.

With our agency, a "typical" search takes anywhere between 4-8 weeks but this can vary widely, obviously, depending on the flexibility (or restrictions) of the individual brief, the amount of supply, the level of demand as well as the current market environment. Home owners generally take longer than investors, however we've had exceptions to this many times over the last 9 years. It also makes a difference if you're looking in predominantly auction-driven areas as opposed to private treaty, as the right property can be worth waiting for in an auction campaign.... fussier buyers vs those ready, willing and able.... commitment-phobic buyers who end up taking so long to make up their mind they miss out (again)... buyers who want to buy NOW NOW NOW vs others who like to take their time....buyers who are more flexible with their brief vs those who have narrowed it down to specific properties that only come on the market rarely....so many variables really.

As Pete also points out, getting the right result can also mean the search takes a little longer. I've had some clients with whom it's taken more than 12 written offers/auctions before we've had success. Others we've been in the right position at the right time with the first property to obtain a result. What is important, however, and especially in a sellers market, is that you are decisive and willing to move when you need to. A good BA can retain confidence here in assisting you to make that decision and move forward.

Best of luck in the Brissy market- I hear it's a little hot just like Sydney

 

[Benvolio]

I recently used Andrew and was very pleased with the whole experience. When i first spoke to him he said he was too busy to take me on as a client and asked i contact him in two months. im glad he was honest and open about it. Thankfully i was able to secure a property quite quickly but i think it was due to good timing and i also was very open to location and type of dwelling, price etc. The more specific you are then obviously the longer it will take. I think you are in great hands with andrew. like people have said - he's busy for a reason.

good luck!

 

[Darlogus]

The reduction in time to sell a property had dropped dramatically from 90 days ( 12 months ago) to 7 days thus Making it more difficult to secure a property. The DD needed on a IP often makes it to late, and it's sold before a decision is made.

 

[sash]

As I have posted previously....BAs are not good in a hot market!

I would suggest people take organise viewings from Sydney (sure some houses/units will be sold when you get on the ground). If you spend 4-5 days on the ground and do your research youw WILL secure a property.

In a hot market you need to view and close quickly...a unresponsive BA will be too slow..and by the time they talk to you it maybe gonskies....

That is how scooped up mine!

 

[jackbak]

As I have posted previously....BAs are not good in a hot market!

I would suggest people take organise viewings from Sydney (sure some houses/units will be sold when you get on the ground). If you spend 4-5 days on the ground and do your research youw WILL secure a property.

In a hot market you need to view and close quickly...a unresponsive BA will be too slow..and by the time they talk to you it maybe gonskies....

That is how scooped up mine!

There's many reasons why people use a BA, here's a couple. Firstly, taking 4-5 days off to do property research is not an option for most people and secondly, a couple of days research on the ground is nothing compared to the research a BA has done over years of experience.

Look at my situation for example, doing my masters at the moment and running a business, wife is working full time and 6 months pregnant, we can barely find a spare Saturday morning to go property searching let alone an entire week interstate.

 

[JacM]

As has already been pointed out, it can take a few weeks or months to find a property that fits what you need. You do want your BA spending time sifting through the properties as opposed to spending too much time providing updates, however if you are a person that would like some more communication, just ask him if he can accommodate pinging you a quick email on a regular basis to let you know he's not forgotten about you.

 

[forthron]

Thankyou so much for your responses! This is the first time I've done this so I'm not sure. I'm relieved to hear that it is normal so I will stop panicking.

I wasn't sure if I had just been forgotten or not! I will let you know how I go then. We recently bought a property but we were looking through ads every day and we just don't have the time to do this anymore!

Hi, just wondering how you went with purchasing a place?

 

[New_Investor]

New Investor

I have just bought a property using a BA, and as many people said. in a hot market, buyers agent job becomes harder as he cannot negotiate everything needs to be quick, or else, someone else will secure the property. I would say be patient. and what you can do, it keep looking, and if you find a nice property that you like, send him and ask about opinion.

I used to do this, and I used to get a very quick response. e.g. already negotiating, seller do not want to reduce the price,...etc. I knew that my BA was doing a good job. Even the property I bought, I sent it to him in the morning, he said that he is viewing it the same day, contract signed the same day.

just let him do this job, and you will be happy with the results.

Thanks
Ram