Should I use a Buyer's Agent?

I believe impermanence is looking in other states, specifically QLD.

I understand that it is important to do your own research etc. I don't understand why people are so against a BA especially for the first one. It is the time when you are most likely to make a mistake due to inexperience and the risk associated with a mistake is highest, your entire investment risk is spread into one property. You can use the buying process with a BA as a mentoring experience giving you confidence in the future.

Sure it is not for everyone and becoming independent should be a goal, however imo the first purchase and interstate purchases are two times you can most benefit from a BA. As the OP is doing both imo a BA wouldn't be a terrible and maybe a good choice.

Exactly my thoughts, if you are buying for the first time and don't have confidence then why not learn from someone who has done it before.

Myself I never have and probably never will, only time I could think is if I was buying interstate which would be in Brisbane but then I have my father there so I doubt I would use them as he is my mentor in property investment and has bought dozens of properties all in Brisbane.

I wouldn't though discourage others from using a BA it is that I had confidence and guidance from my father on my first property but if I didn't have him for my first one I probably would of engaged a BA.
 
Hi,

We are looking to buy a house in Sydney and could really do with a BA's help. Any idea where to find one? How much does one generally cost? Any tips/cautions regarding hiring one?

Thanks.
Sharmila
 
We used a BA to buy a property overseas and was very disappointed. We decided to buy an IP in the UK and although know in the area well, thought it would be best to have someone "on the ground" so to speak to source and view properties. Although we were interested in a fairly large, well known city in the UK, I could only find one BA but on checking him out he seemed well qualified. We appointed him and sent emails and did a Skype session. From then on, he was a dud. We kept trawling the internet looking ourselves and sending him ones were we interested in but nothing much happened. Finally he found us one that seemed perfect but after he did the inspection things ground to a halt and it was only more than a month later the lawyer told us it looked like an illegal subdivision. We picked ourselves up and went on. We had a time limit in which to purchase and it was tickling by. Eventually another one came up so we asked him to go and view but it turned out he'd gone on holidays without telling us! Luckily my daughter lived nearby so we got her to view it. She said it was good and because it was a sellers market at that time, we had to get my daughter to put in an offer for us. In the end we agreed to purchase without the BA. We visited the UK and saw the property just before settlement and luckily for us it was perfect. The only good thing the BA did for us was recommend the area we finally purchased in. It was not an area we would have looked at by ourselves but it did prove to be good and with a lot of new development going on.
 
We used a BA to buy a property overseas and was very disappointed. We decided to buy an IP in the UK and although know in the area well, thought it would be best to have someone "on the ground" so to speak to source and view properties. Although we were interested in a fairly large, well known city in the UK, I could only find one BA but on checking him out he seemed well qualified. We appointed him and sent emails and did a Skype session. From then on, he was a dud. We kept trawling the internet looking ourselves and sending him ones were we interested in but nothing much happened.

Finally he found us one that seemed perfect but after he did the inspection things ground to a halt and it was only more than a month later the lawyer told us it looked like an illegal subdivision. We picked ourselves up and went on. We had a time limit in which to purchase and it was tickling by.

Eventually another one came up so we asked him to go and view but it turned out he'd gone on holidays without telling us! Luckily my daughter lived nearby so we got her to view it. She said it was good and because it was a sellers market at that time, we had to get my daughter to put in an offer for us. In the end we agreed to purchase without the BA.

We visited the UK and saw the property just before settlement and luckily for us it was perfect. The only good thing the BA did for us was recommend the area we finally purchased in. It was not an area we would have looked at by ourselves but it did prove to be good and with a lot of new development going on.

I'm sorry that your experience was a poor one- as with any industry there are levels of service that vary and it sounds like yours was at the lower end. Just as well it had a positive ending :)

As for not declaring his leave during the search, that is unacceptable and certainly something we ensure we are upfront with when we take on clients. We either have another BA who covers during absence, or we agree to put a stop on the search for this period (making it up by adding to the contract period).

Can I ask, out of curiosity, was the BA actually independent in that you paid him a fee? Though there are independent BAs in UK, there are also many agents who are dual-agents (much like the US) taking their fees on a split commission with the vendor's agent for listings. In other words, they're hardly acting in your best interests as they are only considering properties from which they are able to derive a commission payment.
 
heres my 6c

BAs offer a service which is obviously utilised, and for a fee. Every situation is different so there is no yes or no answer.

I have bought property myself in several countries. And I have used a Ba to purchase property also. I can honestly tell you my ba purchased property has done alot better than purchasing myself. This could be because of
- My lack of knowledge and dd when purchasing
- My ba's outstanding knowledge and dd when purchasing
- The market
- Luck

To me it doesnt matter as I will be making 10x + the fee back.
Could I or anyone else have done this themselves?
Ofcourse, So why did i use a ba then?

- I work away, so my time is more valuable to me to spend with my partner when i am home.
- My lack of confidence and knowledge
- I was overseas during settlement so needed that taken care of.
- Superior knowledge in the area of strategey i was looking for.
- He was using a similar strategey himself succesfully
- During my process My ba would have considered and narrowed down over 1000 properties for me. He would of inspected over 100 properties for me. He would have have put offers and negotiated on over 20 properties for me to get the right price and terms for me Before we finally settled on a right property that fits my strategy and goals.

Thats alot of hours of work put in, theres no way i would have been able to put that much work and effort in.

Did I check his work and do my DD on final property?
Ofcourse at the end of the day its my money and my responsibility to ensure i am happy with the purchase and that it does in fact fit my goals.

Would I use a ba again?
I already have and this time sourced a property being sold by an out of area agent that wasnt aware of the higher zoning in the councils planning policy. So a win win.

Would I use a BA on next purchase?
Depends on the situation, But i will most likely be investing interstate and still be working away so it is definatly on the cards.

Would I suggest for you to use a ba?
Depends on your situation but it is worth considering.

hope this helps anyone thats considering to use one and enlightens all those anti ba's that there is in fact circimstances when ba's are an asset to the proccess.

One size does not fit all.
 
Impermanence,

I am currently using a BA for my second IP which is for an intestate purchase in Brisbane and made that decision to go with a BA due to time constraints and some family issues etc.

Just remember every investor is different and really it's up to you to still research the BA you are going to use to get the best for your intended purchase.

Make sure you are really detailed on your buying brief with them to get a very clear understanding on what you are after-CG,CF+,development site etc..

A Buyers Agent is a big outlay but if you get a quality outcome from it and maybe a little knowledge from the process will you be that concerned in say 10 years when the property has hopefully doubled..me thinks no!!

Good Luck

Coota

Hi Coota, would you recommend a BA in Brisbane please? I am looking for one. Thanks heaps!
Jsoe
 
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