Hi Cattleya

Congratulations on your first property purchase in Brisbane! It is great to see that you have learnt a lot from your buying experience and that you have shared this with everyone as I am sure a few other potential investors will pick up a few of your learnings.

It sounds like you are a person who wants to learn and experience the full process for yourself, so you may not need to use a buyer’s agent. To me your comments show exactly why someone would use a buyer’s agent. Many people do not have the time or willingness to go through all of this and many people greatly benefit from using a buyer’s agent as they take much of this process away from them. A good buyer’s agent will help put all the pieces of the puzzle together on your behalf which definitely makes it easier, especially for those who have never invested before.

With regards to the fees paid to buyer’s agents, many of them negotiate this fee upfront and it is a flat fee (which may have been based on an estimated purchase price) so in the end there is no difference to the purchase price. I myself and a few other’s have moved to fee for service and it is a flat fee for our services, so you can be assured that the buyer’s agent is 100% on your side. And you can also check to see if the buyer’s agent also acts as a sales agents. Some buyer’s agents like myself do not act as a selling agent as well so you know there is no conflict for the buyer’s agent to ‘buy you one of their properties that they are selling’.

And you always have to ask for buyer’s agent qualifications. Here in South Australia you can check to see if they have a Real Estate License (RLA) and if they are a member of the Real Estate Institute of South Australia (REISA) or another professional body. You are correct in that there are some cowboys that portray themselves as ‘buyer’s agents’ with no qualifications or licenses, so be careful and always do your homework.

Overall I think you have done a great job and you will be fine acting on your own in future. But for many others, especially when buying an investment property interstate, I believe that using a local buyer’s agent in that area can save them a lot of time, stress and potentially money. As an Adelaide Buyer’s Agent I take great pride in helping those from interstate buy their first investment property in Adelaide so if you ever decide to buy in Adelaide, feel free to contact me as I will be happy to have an initial chat and hopefully put you in the right direction, even if you decide to go out on your own.

All the best with your new investment property.

Hi Cattleya

I thought I would give an opinion of a buyer’s agent to hopefully give you some more information. I only help clients buy property in Adelaide so I have no vested interest in getting you to use a buyer’s agent for a Brisbane property, however I thought you might find my comments useful so I thought I would comment.

Many of your points about buyer’s agents are noted, but I guess the greatest benefit I find my clients are seeing is that when you are interstate it is hard to get a ‘feel’ for a property or an area without seeing it. Now I am not sure how many properties you will go and look at but if you have to fly down and look at the property to inspect it each time, this can become costly in both time and money spent on travel. You may want to look at 10 properties before you sign a contract, and a buyer’s agent can inspect them on your behalf and get you to only come down when a property looks like it is suitable. A buyer’s agent should be able to significantly reduce the number of times you need to travel to Brisbane to inspect properties. Then there is also after you buy the property, making sure that everything runs smoothly and the property is handed over in a reasonable state, and that you have access to suitable property managers that the buyer’s agent can manage their progress.

Yes using a buyer’s agent can be an added cost, but for many people that are time poor and unfamiliar with an area they can find the service as a huge value add. Maybe it is worth talking to a buyer’s agent just to see what they have to say, most of them should offer a free consultation, and they may already have something suitable for you.

All the best with your search for the right investment property.

Hi Ned

I would speak with a local buyer’s agent. I would have been happy to help but I only understand the Adelaide market haha I am sure there are a few buyer’s agents on here that can help?

Some buyer’s agents may be able to just do some research for you that will help point you in the right direction and give you the confidence to go out and buy your first investment property.

But I also agree with Richard above. The first step is to speak with a mortgage broker and get your finances sorted / pre-approved so you know exactly where you stand..

All the best with your first investment property!

Make sure you do your research by speaking to council and a town planner before you buy the property! I often here about people buying a corner block or dual access property thinking they can build a second dwelling, but after buying the property found out that this was not possible..