The ABC of a property buying team
Purchasing a property is one of the single biggest, and most important purchases anyone will make in their lives. It can be easy, smooth and stress free when you engage the right people, and know what those people do. Depending on the complexity, structure and terms of the purchase, some may only need one of two of these professions engaged to assist with the process, others may need them all. Let me explain and break down each one for you, and what they do to help make buying property easy.
Accountant - probably a staple of every household in the country, every persons most trusted advisor when it comes to money or finances is their accountant. if we want to buy a house, most people talk to their accountant, if we want to buy a car, most people talk to their accountant, if we want to invest, most people talk to their accountant, if we need help with money management, most people talk to their accountant. When it comes to property and buying property or investing in property having a good accountant can change everything but having a bad accountant can really set you back, and I can speak about this first hand as I went through 3 accountants before finding one who suited me and my goals and who could help me grow my portfolio and help me make educated and correct decisions around everything from personal finance to investments and everything in between. Most people think a good accountant is one that can get you a good return every year but I tend to disagree with that. A good accountant is someone who tailors and structures your financial affairs in the best way possible for each individual person and who can maximise your returns whilst also not putting you at risk of having to repay the tax man. There is only 2 guarantees In life, Death & Taxes, and the tax man never forgets.
Brokers - mortgage brokers are an essential piece of every property buying puzzle. Mortgage brokers have access to various different banks & lenders and they deal with different people internally than what any person off the street would if they called up personally and made an application for finance. Different mortgage brokers also have access and may be on the panel of of certain banks/lenders as opposed to other brokers, so be mindful to shop around if you feel that a deal is not right for you, the right mortgage broker will save you thousands or get you access to more funds to help you achieve your goals whereas the wrong broker will cost you thousands.
Insurance brokers are a severely underrated cog in any property purchase or any property portfolio, I personally didn’t start using an insurance broker until I had a couple of properties in my portfolio but the difference they made and the savings that they where able to achieve for me where massive. I consult with my insurance broker before and purchase I make these days whether it be for my personal portfolio or for owner occupied clients or even investor clients because I personally know how much insurance can save you after having one of my own investment properties burnt down and having proactive insurance brokers who streamlined the entire claiming process and managed the whole claim from start to finish they proved to me that they are worth their weight in gold.
Conveyancers/solicitors - a property purchase would not happen without a conveyancer or solicitor, they are the engine room of any property transaction. There is no glitz or glamour that comes with conveyancers and solicitors, they aren’t giving you access to money or helping you set yourself up for future financial wealth, but what they are doing is doing the dirty work and the heavy lifting of wheeling and dealing the contractual side of a property transaction/purchase. Now if you are like me and are hard up reading a news article then a 42 page purchase contract is going to be a stretch but that’s where your conveyancer or solicitor comes into play. They know these contracts like the back of their hands and they know what to look for so that you don’t get caught out buying a lemon or buying something that is not going to allow you to do what you want with the property or if you have to give up your dog or your first born child as part of the purchase. There is so many places to hide things in a purchase contract that the untrained eye will not know how to find, but a good conveyancer or solicitor will highlight these and will tell you the risks involved with proceeding to purchase and will potentially give you the advice you need to talk away from a purchase that will ultimately not be worth it.
