FAQs Buyer Agents

It is a conflict where we have two clients who become interested in the same property. This does occasionally happen as we deal with a lot in investors and some of our owner occupier clients change their YOUR NEEDS profile. Our solution to this difficult issue is openness :

• We tell both parties
• We prepare the same Property Report in all aspects except YOUR NEEDS.
• We have one of our principals handle each client. We don't discuss any client details with other clients.
• While we cannot encourage one party NOT to bid (eg have our own private auction to determine a winner) because of recent legislation forbidding it, we can inform the other party if one person is no longer interested.

If you are not happy with this, we refund any engagement fee if requested and also, if requested, refer you onto another REIV approved advocate.

There will almost always be competition on good property and on the rare occasion that this happens within our company, we will be completely straight and inform you so as you can make an informed decision. We are committed to being open and honest with our clients at all times.

Click here to read our full conflict management process

For couples looking for single fronted 3 bedroom period homes we suggest suburbs close to the city such as Albert Park, St Kilda or Elwood. Single fronted period homes that are reasonably well renovated have been consistent performers in the capital growth and rental stakes. On the other side of the bay Williamstown has a large number of period homes and is a great lifestyle choice for those wanting to close to the city but without the hussle and bustle.

If your budget is not as strong then think of Yarraville and Seddon - a bit edgy but as an investment these suburbs have been the stand out performers over the last 25 years according to valuer general data. If you needed more space eg a double fronted then Beaumaris through Parkdale and Mordialloc has some great homes; however its further traveling time to the city.

You have a few choices here - you can go the leafy green, freeway access Eastern suburbs choice including Malvern, Kew, Hawthorn and Canterbury or you can go the Bayside option of Brighton or Hampton, Sandringham. Both have great access to schools, are long term solid capital growth performers and a wide range of housing options.

At $4Million your type of home will be determined by your land size requirements or vice versa. If you need a tennis court in a good position then you may have to compromise on the house a bit. However if you are a house person and only need around 800 sqm or 8000 sq ft then you have more options. Your street can be a premium and you can demand the right light orientation.

If you are from an Asian country, never having lived here before then we probably wouldn't be showing you Californian Bungalows in Ormond, Bentleigh or McKinnon. We would be going for suburbs like Balwyn, Surrey Hills where the homes are more 1960's onwards. However we would show you these suburbs if you said you liked Californian Bungalows.

Of course if you had a million dollars and wanted a period home then the above suburbs would be a great place to start. McKinnon secondary school, Centre Road shops, great capital growth over a long period of time.

If you would like to live in a Jewish community then Caulfield would be where we may start and specifically we could show you the differences between North and South Caulfield and the neighbouring suburb of Elsternwick.

Need more space Glen Iris, Northcote, Fairfield, Mont Albert are all places we have bought substantial family homes in as well in recent times.

More and more parents are engaging us to find homes for their children. The first thing we point out is the first and second house decision is so critical as for many people it determines where and how you will live for the rest of your life. In almost all occasions we encourage buying a poorer house closer into the CBD than a "McMansion" in the outer suburbs. Lets talk.

No

No, unless agreed at the start (e.g. interstate travel).

No. Never.

No. Never.

Because if you don't know what you are doing you may pay far too much, irrespective of what market we are in. You may buy the wrong property and incur significant costs in the process of reselling in a few years (stamp duty alone is often 3-4 times our fee) or you may simply miss out on a great buy and what you wanted. None of us would walk into your area of expertise and expect to compete on a level playing field with you, nor would we go to court without a lawyer or do our own tax. It is too important a decision to get wrong.

Yes. Please read our Case Studies and Tesimonials.

If you are not completely happy with our service, and we haven't made a purchase for you, then we refund any fees paid upon your request. We average two refunds per year.

We do not take money from selling agents for anything - ever. We do not receive undisclosed commissions from anybody. We have no interest in any of the properties we recommend. These are the cornerstones of how we work and our promises to you. They are in writing, publicly available and we are totally committed to them.

• All communications & meetings with you
• Searching with or without you for a suitable property
• Use of all our databases
• Communications/meetings with agents whilst searching for a property
• Property rating and ranking with our patent pending "Property Ratings System" - our very own objective property qualification tool.
• Preparation of property report(s)
• Liaison communications with your solicitor.
• Arranging further due diligence checks - pest and building inspections as required (you are required to pay for these separately but we can liaise and organise them for you without financial benefit to us)
• Negotiation tactics and strategy
• Execution of strategies to purchase the property
• Checking final contracts pre signatures
• Pre settlement inspections

Buyer advocates or buyer agents are agents who should work exclusivelyfor the property buyer. We do. There are some similarities between a good selling agent and a good buying advocate, but we work for opposite sides.

Actually, many people do, especially in overseas countries. In Melbourne, the numbers are growing and we estimate 1 in 4 buyers use an advocate or seek independent professional advice.

We suggest you seek buying advice on every property transaction, the same as you would do if you were selling. You are making a huge investment, so make sure it is right.

Not everybody can see the benefits of an advocate. Some people do their own tax, represent themselves in court and sell their own home. That's OK by us - we are only providing a choice.

Although we are becoming better known, we do not sell properties for a start and therefore our company exposure is limited to our own advertising. We rarely advertise as most of our business is referral-based or word of mouth. Other reasons include: historical reasons - selling agents were here first; we provide very little revenue to the media; there are fewer advocates than agents; and it is in our clients' interest to have a lower profile.

About 80% are homebuyers and 20% investors. We buy units, land, homes and commercial properties.

We have bought $750,000 land sites as well as multi-million dollar properties.

We organise leasing and general property advice and we give selling advice, but we do not sell.

All of Melbourne, regional areas and both peninsulas. We have also bought interstate and we deal through affiliates overseas if the need arises.

Many.

If a client has a specific property in mind, it can take 1 day to 4 weeks (or longer). Otherwise, on average it takes 1-3 months.

Now is a good time to buy good property and now is a good time to let bad property pass you by.

Please contact us. As a client, we can help you answer questions like:

• How much do I spend?
• Am I acting too quickly?
• Is it for sale now?
• But the auction is this weekend, can you help?
• How can I not pay too much?
• What's it worth?
• Is it a good deal?
• I'm too emotional, can you help?
• But I'm scared - will I miss out?
• I've been looking for too long, what can I do?
• Should I buy now?
• Should I sell first?
• Should I renovate or relocate?
• I've got no time and I'm stressed, can you help?
• The agent is tricky or very nice or useless or not ringing me, what do I do?
• What is an Expression of Interest or a Tender or a Set Sale?
• How do I make an offer when the asking price is so high?
• Are you downsizing, getting married, separating, having children, have elderly parents or a disabled relative or just need a change?

We are subject to the Privacy Act. We do not reveal the names of our clients to anybody (a) without their permission; or (b) unless it is in the normal course of signing contracts etc.

All references on this site are genuine and were provided by clients who were happy to have their names revealed.

Dummy bidding at auctions has reduced dramatically since new legislation was introduced. However, the legislation only covers you for the 15 minutes of a live auction. What about after the auction or before? What about private sale - now the most common form of sale? You are not covered.

While they worry the inexperienced, they do not affect how we do business. In fact, they often help. Unfortunately, legislation cannot completely stop dummy bidding.

Either way, it's your call.

No.

Yes, we do that for overseas clients regularly.

Yes, we understand the intricacies of contracts and section 32's. We recommend your solicitor reads them prior to any purchase.

We can arrange inspections and meeting with other professionals if required. We do not charge or receive any referral fee for this service. Our recommendations are genuine.

Aggressively or meekly as our instinct tells us. Openly or in secret as our experience tells us.

Research, experience and "real" information.

Not quite. We deal with your financial adviser, your accountant, your architect and your solicitor where appropriate. We specialise in property. We bring together the outside expertise as it is needed if you do not already have it.

Good selling agents do help to a point, but, as required by Victorian legislation (Estate Agents Act) a selling agent must act in the best interests of his/her seller (vendor). He or she does not, and should not, work for you, the buyer. Agents would like to work for both sides and have it both ways, but when you think about, they cannot possibly do both effectively.

Rarely - most are professional; but if the need arises, and our clients are best served by such actions, then yes. We can play hard ball too!

We receive news of many unadvertised properties from good agents. Some are very good at their job. Yes, we respect the good ones.

There are many reasons why that may not be in your best interests. There is no such thing as a free lunch.