Tools of a Buyers Agent

What are the tools of the trade for a buyers agent? It'll be interesting to hear how you sell yourself to a client, how you research and what tools you rely on to get the job done.

I'm only asking because I think it'll also help us who aren't in the game full time.

 

1. Real estate licence (not a certificate of registration)
2. Contact list as long as your leg

 

No one will want to share their secrets?? but the truth is there are no secrets, comes down to understanding markets and research and keeping it real, not living in la la land, in other words living on hope for growth, they call it buy and hold, I call it speculation.


MTR

 

You are very anti B&H strategy, numerous people have done very well from this and take little expertise to do it. Yes there are ways to make more money quicker but it also comes down to more risk so you can also lose more money quicker.

May ways to reach the destination and is up to the individuals circumstances and mindset to which way they prefer.

RE: OP there isn't any tool that they have that a normal person cannot get. They would likely have access to RP data or some other service similar.

However they would (or hopefully) done numerous purchases so can know the agencies tricks. Know value in property but BA don't have to buy it for less sometimes it is buying the right property. Have a network of REA, inspectors, etc who are reliable and do good jobs, they might use a software package to analyze the purchase (e.g. PIA Software).

However there isn't anything secret or BA exclusive that isn't available to the public.

 

I know of people that they have software's that they developed that will spit out the properties say that just go listed which meet certain requirements, such as in a LMR zoning, 200m to district centers, corner lots.. this is for Brisbane but same software tool could well reprogrammed to met certain objective/preferences..
I think the big BA company might already use internal/custom tools to do certain task. Smaller/free lance BA could well invest some tools like this...maybe define your objective and outsource to someone offshore to do the program for you? just thinking out aloud...

 

I need to add I use dedicated hardware - a 2017 UBD

 

??
is this your intended link..
http://www.hardiegrant.com.au/publi...ectory-53rd-ed-by-ubd-gregory_s/9780731930647..

 

@RetireRich101 - That's what I got. A good BA has got to know how to get around.

 

I imagine there would be a risk of properties falling through the cracks when relying solely on software. Properties listed with no address for example.

 

correct....as few % of the listings Agent don't put address for baiting, privacy concerns etc.
however a clever software should pick up the property address even if its not listed...

though when mapped out against council db of zoning, using longitude/latitude (?) it may be not be 100% when results are generated, but at least it filters alot of your listing...especially if you're a BA nationally...

 

No magic wand, just lots of hard work. A few off the top of my head to kick off with:

-a subscription database for looking at historical data and comparable sales, rents, development approvals, etc. (PriceFinder, CoreLogic)

-a zoning map

-get a town planner contact at the Council…& speak to them before you buy anything

-a logical method of recording all of the properties you’ve seen might be useful

-a camera…& good pair of shoes! You’ll need to inspect lots of properties!

-FloodWise reports (in Brisbane)

-some suburb data is useful, wouldn’t go overboard on this – mainly use your eyes & ears to identify trends (e.g. the new supply coming online, the property types that families want to buy etc.), gentrification, school zones, quiet streets, etc. You probably want to be looking at properties that are in an affordable range for prospective renters & buyers, for example

-get to know agents in your chosen area better than you do your own kin. Let them know exactly what you’re looking for & get access to pre-market or off-market deals

-what Scott said: build up useful contacts for every step of the process: mortgage brokers, solicitors/conveyancers, building & pest inspectors, property managers, strata report companies, surveyors, accountants, etc.

-experience of buying dozens of properties & learning the many pitfalls (this comes with time)

-do a negotiating course, or get a mate that’s good at negotiating. If you’re going to buy at auction, at the very least go & watch a few first! Set yourself a bidding limit (& stick to it)

-do a conveyancing course, or get a good solicitor friend so you can proof contracts before making conditional offers

-there are probably some wicked Apps or something these days - dunno anything about these tbh

-learn not to buy one of the first places you see, at least until you’ve looked at the full market properly. What you don’t buy is arguably almost as important as what you do…

-if you’re serious about maximising results, you probably want a template you can use for estimating all likely costs, depreciation, cash flows (before & after tax), projecting rental & equity growth etc. Doesn’t have to be paid for, you can design your own in a spreadsheet

-some people find having a ‘property brief’ document handy – just a list of the key aspects and criteria you’re looking for, and ticking them off when you find a property that’s a possible candidate

-read Property Chat, not newspapers ;-)

Don’t overplay the statistical stuff, but try to at least get a basic understanding of the business cycle, and employ a bit of common sense e.g. if someone directs you to an area that’s reliant on one employer or industry, they probably don’t have any.

Finally, before you buy anything spend some time thinking about possible strategies and scenarios i.e. is it a future development? Or a property you want to pass on to your kids (‘time in the market’)? If you’re planning to time the market, then have a think about who is likely to buy the property from you in the future, when, and for how much.

 

Okie,

What kind of options are available for conveyancing and negotiating course?

Conveyancing is just 1000 (max), if you hire a solicitor, so it wont save you much
Am I missing something?

Negotiating, on the other hand, can save you loads.

Regards

 

Depends if you want to make pre-market offers quickly (& also how many properties you're planning to buy).

Conveyancers & solicitors are busy people - (some) can get stuff wrong & regularly fail to explain key points to you, so regardless of cost it's better to understand contracts yourself, if not essential.

 

I agree. It has saved me maybe up to 1mil or more over the years. It's a skill I have advocated many times on PC for the hardcore investor to spend some time developing.

Two others that can make a huge difference is 'persuasion' and effectively 'building relationships/contacts'.

Just my take.

 

Why would you need a software for something like that? I would not relied on any app to do my research as much as I don't rely on automated valuations.
I have email alerts from realestate.com.au set up for areas of interest. I will see every property as soon as it is listed. It does not take lot of time to check couple of emails every day and you will have lot better understanding of the market.
I also save properties of interest on realestate.com.au so I can refer to it later or see what they eventually sell for.

 

as the title of this post..
Tools of a Buyers Agent..

You're an investor interested in certain pockets or suburb(s) that match certain criteria. And of course you can also filter out multiple postcodes, filter out based certain criteria or keywords...

BA or other investor/developer may be interested in certain criteria that is not in the RE listing and are interested in many many suburb. For example I am interested in these Brisbane council BCC, MBRC, LCC, Redland council that has dev potential.... I know of people pay BA to find Brisbane properties that are 200m from district zone that can be subdivided which RE agent are ignorant about. Also when a new zoning is adapted, the RE takes about 12 months to get to know the zoning. Of course you can build the rapport with RE agents, but they themselves may not know it has that opportunity,.

 

Fair enough. If you using it just to locate certain properties over a large area is another thing.

 

If you are wanting to also access education or at least obtain a minimum BA licence as a way of picking up some more "tools" and knowledge, then I'd suggest going through one of the REI training programmes, face to face, as you will learn so much more than going online. REINSW run an excellent 5 day programme though it does depend on participant numbers
Training | Buyers' Agent Licence course

However, it's also more about experience in the field and contacts, as others have rightly pointed out. Theory will only get you so far, like most industries

 

My favorite to agents is how many houses do you have ?, if you can talk the talk, i would expect you to walk the walk,some people ozze passion,others its just a job.

 

Great thread! How do you determine what renters want in an area? I've heard 'buy in high owner occupier areas for growth' etc but how do i find out these owner occupier/ renter percentages, how many rooms renters want etc.