An increasing number of investors across New Zealand are using buyer’s agents (aka property finders) to grow their portfolios quickly, and to take advantage of the guidance of those who have “been there and done that”. Many people ask how we do what we do, so here I share some recent deals made in a typical week.

Monday

I get a text from a friend of a friend saying they would like to sell their home but are too embarrassed to go to open market. The house is in a right state from having 12 cats and a hoarder live there. Would I know of anyone who may be interested in a private sale? Of course I do, and within a few days a client has the property under offer. After cleaning it up, the buyer has it revalued and he has unlocked great capital gain on top of his new cashflow positive property.

Tuesday

I get a call from a local agent I know well. Her agency has just signed a “quiet” listing for a tidy block of units. The owner decided not to publicly list them, so they will only be available to a few select buyers the agency knows of, which includes iFindProperty’s clients. I view them, they look great and I negotiate a price. The yield is fantastic for the area, well above average, and once I have helped my client do the due diligence, which all checks out, the property is purchased and settled.

‘The yield is fantastic for the area, well above average, and once I have helped my client do the due diligence, which all checks out, the property is purchased and settled’

Wednesday

A call comes in from another agent. There’s a deadline sale ending later today and so far, there is no interest. The place needs a bit of work done to it and the vendor really needs to sell. He will look at any reasonable offers. I view it, call a client and by the deadline time that same day, we have emailed our final offer in, which is accepted. Six days later, once we have completed all our due diligence, my client is unconditional and is really excited as they have been looking for something in this price range for a long time and have had no luck themselves.

Thursday

A local property manager I know calls me. A landlord is looking to sell and she thinks I may be able to find a buyer. The owner had recently just signed a new fixed one-year tenancy on the property, thinking that would help with the sale to an investor. Unfortunately, the rent on the agreement is well under current market rent, as the owner thought he would be nice to the tenant, despite the property manager advising him against it. When we work out the yield on the property it is so low and not a great deal for any of my clients, so we decline to offer.

Friday

An out-of-town investor I am working with sends me a link to look at a couple of “great” places they have seen on Trade Me in my area. They appear from the outside to be amazing deals but what they can’t see from the advert (or what the vendor’s agent is not publicly advertising) is the whopping pylon pole that sits in the empty section next door. The other property sits on a river floodplain and council is investigating buying up the homes and demolishing. The client saved a lot of time, hassle and potential heartbreak.

In between there are lots of other properties to view, clients to call, due diligence to help organise and agents to have coffees with.

If you want to invest outside of the area you live in (and I highly recommend you do as you don’t want to miss out on great opportunities in other parts of New Zealand just because you don’t live there) then a good buyer’s agent will not only source you a deal, they will make sure you avoid buying a lemon.

iFindProperty is a licensed Investment Property Agency and our clients tell us we are great at helping investors find, analyse and buy great properties to build an awesome portfolio. Our team of Property Finders operate all over New Zealand and each are successful investors in their own markets. Successful investing starts with you and your property goals, so contact us today to talk about what you want to achieve and we will put a team in place to make it happen. Contact:info@ifindproperty.co.nz or 0274 866 146.