Facebook group property sourcing

Also another place to source properties is online groups , there are tonnes off groups on facebook that talk about property  , they include ones for landlords discussing tenant issues  , ones for tax issues with property ones for refurbishing property the list goes on . You could even set up a group yourself and cultivate it so that it grows and builds members , you can then without being to blunt ask members if they have any properties to sell ,  especially landlords as they do occasionally offload a property or 2 . One main rule if entering group is that you need to add value before blatantly asking if anyone has a property to sell as this will result in most circumstances to being removed from the group.

This process can be time consuming for the reasons above; you will need to add value to the group to be found useful so that if you do start asking about property for sale you are not kicked immediately from the group. Giving to the group E.G any knowledge you have that’s relevant to the group , if it is a group for property repairs recommending people you have used before for property repair , tips on DIY  type repairs , answering members requests directly with valuable answers . Once you have shown value you can start asking subtly if anyone has property to sell.

If the group is your own you will need to grow it organically by messaging people to join that have relevance to the group you are growing and as above you need to add value to the group, by adding tips and advice and encouraging others in the group to do the same this will result in a group that will be recommended, the bigger the group the more chance you will have off sourcing property and also gaining knowledge from other members on property related matters.

To be continued

 

 

Sourcing property without using a 3rd party

 

 

If you are motivated and serious about property investment and have some time on your hands, you can source property directly without using a 3^rd party. This requires a good degree of self motivation and time. I know an investor who basically goes out into the area he is looking to buy a property and looks for property that is run down and knocks on the door to see if the owner is in and would consider selling the property, he says it’s a lot of leg work and purely a numbers game but strikes gold enough times to make it worth it. You might get some negative people that think its rude that you’ve knocked on the door but that’s rare he usually gets a polite response with a no plans to sell , or might be selling in the future or if he strikes lucky yes I was thinking about selling soon . Good record keeping is required as it might be a case you pick up information you can go back with, in the future, you might also be told that the person has a friend or relative who is ready to sell.  Also it worth getting simple leaflet made to leave with some of the prospects that show interest with an incentive if they come to you first when selling or recommend a friend.

 

The advantage of this direct type of sourcing is that you get to the vendor before they have been to estate agents, this means you can do a deal directly with the vendor before they have been signed up with an agent or Auction house, you might get lucky with a vendor who is suddenly desperate to sell quickly and pick up a real bargain also the vendor will save on agent fees so this can be considered when negotiating the price. Also agents tend to inflate the price to get the business or offer the bargain properties to friends, so you are getting to the fruit when it’s ripe for picking.

Another thing you can do if you are no confident in knocking on doors is getting a good leaflet made and picking properties that look run down and leave a leaflet, you can also leave leaflets in properties with for sale signs as the agent might be overpricing the property and fail to sell it and you might be given a call once the agreement with the agent is over. Or you can do as agents do blanket leaflet an area with an offer of a quick sale without agent fees, also put a bit on the leaflet about recommending a friend or relative who wants to sell will result in a commission or voucher etc.

To be continued

 

PROPERTY INVESTMENT CLUBS

 

 In summery these clubs are known as a property investment club, buy to let scheme, buy to let schemes or syndicates. The scheme allows the members to invest in the property in the UK market if it is a UK focused investment club or sometimes in properties abroad if it offers this as a part of the investment profile. These clubs offer

1.       Pooling of resources to allow collective management and ownership of investment property

2.       Much or all of the property being financed by the members of the scheme, usually 15% equity and 85% debt, the property investment club will be linked to brokers and lenders so they will usually arrange the finance for the member.

3.       A lot of property clubs offer educational training on investing in the property market

4.       Other help like , finding a conveyancer or recommending conveyancer they are linked with , sale of the property , creating tenancy agreements , finding tenants etc through their network of people they are connected with .

5.       Some property clubs work with developers of new properties, and you might be given early access to new developments etc .

Property clubs are regulated by the FCA , the regulation governs promotion of the investment club and how they collect any fee levied .

Collective investment schemes

Broadly speaking, a collective investment scheme is any arrangement:

 

1.       The purpose or effect of which is to enable those taking part ( either by owning the property , or part of it , or otherwise ) to participate in or receive profits or an income arising from  the acquisition , holding, management or disposal of the property :

2.       Where people who take part, do not have day to day control over the management of the property.

3.       Where either the contributions and profits or income are pooled, or the property is managed as a whole by or on behalf of the operator of the scheme or both.

Advantages and disadvantages of property investment clubs.

Pros of Investment Clubs

• Pooling resources with others can make buying possible for some who might not be able to invest otherwise. 
• Some clubs offer learning opportunities, bringing in knowledgeable speakers and organizing group attendance at conferences. 
• The tasks inherent in investing in real estate can be spread out to different members so no one gets overwhelmed.

 

 

Cons of Investment Clubs

• Emotions can get involved when you're dealing with several different personalities, and emotion shouldn't play a role in investing.
• Some clubs require pricey membership fees, and these costs can ultimately cut into your returns.
• You might not be able to easily get your money out if you need to do so because of an emergency.

 

Property sourcing companies

 

Property sourcing companies

 

There are companies out in the market place that will find all types of property for you for a fee , they will do this by taking details of the type of property you are looking for and a budget , some will offer a formal consultation to justify the fee they will charge you , this will involve a visit to their office’s to meet one of their consultants ( currently a lot of this is suspended due to Covid restrictions) so they are mostly doing a consultation over the internet on a zoom call etc . Other less expensive companies will simply ask you to fill in a form online and you will be given a quote on how much it will be to find you the correct property.

It is worth shopping around as fees vary greatly and some will only charge once you have found a property, some will charge up front and some will have an upfront admin fee and fee on finding you the property. I would suggest finding one that charges on finding a suitable property, you need to make sure once the property has been found that it is in price range and that the property has not already been sold or has a dozen other people after the property, you are paying them to find you a property in budget for you to buy that is ready for you to offer on.

Property sourcing is hard work and some of these companies will cut corners to take a fee from you so will go to agents in the area and find properties that have already had offers accepted on or that are no longer on the market to try and take a fee from you upfront . The best ones have good reviews on trust pilot, have been established for a good period of time as ones that are taking money and not providing the service will not last long in business , these ones when you research the company if it has only been trading for a short time I would be wary .

Property sourcing companies that are worth their salt will find properties that are not readily available to you by calling local estate agents or doing a quick internet search ETC, they will have a stream of established contacts that offer them first look at new properties coming on to the market, they will also advertise on the internet and in paper media for people looking to sell and  they can find them buyers quickly this direct approach gives more  exclusivity to the service. I was offered by an auction house a few years back commission to source property by approaching my mortgage client data base , auction houses and property sourcing companies have a team of self employed commission based property source’s  on their books so that they can reach hard to find clients who might not have approached an estate agent or Auction house already to sell their property .

So you do not waste money it is advisable as with buying from auctions to have your finances and legal person ready to buy once the property is offered to you by the sourcing company as you might end up wasting your money otherwise.

In summary do your research before signing with one of these companies and have your finances ready to go .

Sourcing Property right move and Zoopla

 

 

Sourcing Property right move and Zoopla

Now as everything seems to move online, sourcing property online has become a bigger part of finding per property to live in or for investment. Now nearly all estate agents advertise their properties on Right move and Zoopla , Right move that was established in 2000 and was a joint venture  with Halifax , Countrywide , Royal sun alliance & Connells , it is a huge online portal for advertising property . It has an easy search function were you can put property type, number of bedrooms, location and price range. It is ideal if you are looking for property outside the immediate area it has a great advantage as most local agents only sell properties in a certain catchment area.

It is also very good for comparing property prices in various areas you might be considering and you have most of the properties for sale through estate agents in the UK without leaving your house great currently whilst there is a pandemic also right move offers a rental search so you can look at other properties like the ones you are looking for if buying for investment and can work out the average rent for a property in that area , even surveyors use this as a tool to estimate rent for the mortgage company when lending.  

Zoopla is a brand of ZPG and was found as Zoopla in 2007 Zoopla acquired the Property Finder Group, consisting of the websites Propertyfinder.com, Hotproperty.co.uk and UK Property Shop

Zoopla can be used like Right move as above and allows buyer to look for property UK wide, it has properties for sale , to rent , new homes section , commercial shops etc , overseas agent finder & a really good section for pricing properties , this is something you can use to find out if a property you are trying to buy is in the right price range , or if you are selling a property in conjunction with sold properties on land registry  ,what you property should be worth .

Some agents also offer a virtual tour of the property with access through the above portals so you can do everything via your computer.

Both portals have property guides and lots of other useful tools