Finding Property for you

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Finding the right property is in many ways the key to success. However the right property does not have a single definition. 

Areas that have shown a high growth one year may become stable over the next couple while an area next to them could have a rush to catch up. A new development could make an area more sought after or bring more jobs and people to the area, but it could also mean that there is not as large a shortage and depress prices for a while. 

Getting property at below the market price of course makes the venture considerably safer and means that you have immediate growth from the day you own it. Property may be available cheaply because the seller wants to sell in a hurry for some reason, such as a divorce settlement, repossession looming, emigrating or working abroad, where others may subsidize the sale as when a chain can be broken, or where it is just not selling because it is poorly presented, perhaps not decorated to suit the people who are looking at it, or it needs some work done. On other occasions it may just have been undervalued, and there is a considerable difference in valuations in some areas between agents. We know of a case where two agents valued a property in the centre of a terrace and one valued it at over twice the value of the other.

Getting the calculations straight is important, so when work is required you can accurately guess the time it will take and costs you will have to incur, not only in property changes and decoration but in carpets, curtains and equipment you will need to add before it can be let out. Many of the programmes that have been on the TV showing people doing up and reselling homes at a profit, have illustrated how time overruns and uncontrolled budgets often means that they would have done just as well if they had just bought a house and left it empty for the same period, and therefore renovating is not always cost effective as opposed to getting a house that is able to be let out fast.

Often when people think of property portfolios they think of the smaller cheaper, older properties. Few fully take into account all the many options. For example self build  homes are often luxurious but more importantly up to 25% below the cost of the same house from other sources. While a few people move into a caravan and self build over years, the majority just manage the project often using an experienced builder or manager to do most of this for them and can build a new home in around 12 weeks. 

Reducing risk often involves having a variety of property types and in a variety of locations, so local factors are not detrimental. For this reason a wide knowledge of the housing market becomes an advantage or at least knowing people in other areas or with the knowledge of this.

Clearly you can use estate agents but they are representing the seller and have a mindset that says property is worth more than the last house to sell in the same road, so are not inclined towards the idea of getting it for you at anything from half this value. They will see the good points, while when buying one needs to cost up the improvements that can be said to be essential.

With overseas properties, often the investment market is not as established making real bargains a possibility, particularly when buying and organizing improvements, however a great deal more research and background information is required in order to know a good opportunity from a catastrophe about to happen. In many cases their idea of time frame is somewhat slower than ours and red tape and other factors can cause projects to slip rapidly behind, making progressing and the ability to sort out projects at a great distance essential.

How the club can help

On some occasions however you will come across opportunities that may not suit you, but you could see could suit another member. It should be at a minimum of a 15% discount against value, with hopefully more.  In these cases it is only right that you should receive a finders fee for this, and you will find others offering finder services also often within specific groups such as those who have attended expensive property courses.

On other occasions you may be able to just help us when we are looking at an area you know well or perhaps be one of our volunteers who send in property supplements from papers in their area.

We have within the club four distinct finding services:

• Club services UK service run for us by Maximum Coverage Ltd, where we arrange for an experienced buyer to help you, identify the need you have with you, and find the deal for you to meet your need. At the end of the UK finding page we look at other services that also could be used to meet your needs and which is best in each situation.

• Club services Overseas finding service. Also run by Maximum Coverage Ltd. Fees are similar to the UK service, but some cost may be encountered to cover travel cost as well if your requirements are specific, but not when a number of properties are being sought in an area.

• H3 service - executive property bargain search service with all the trimmings,  well above anything else we offer or available elsewhere. Mostly this is used to find USA property that are exceptionally good prices, and be fully supported through the search and purchase, but a small number of UK searches are also undertaken as well. Read about this even if its not the service you choose as its one we would like all our services eventually to be modelled on. This may seem expensive on first inspection, but frequently gets the price down by several times the cost plus the speed means you get things started faster, before prices rise again.

• Free leads, This is information on properties we have come across or other members feel may be worth you looking at but fall short of a recommended buy. These are available from this web site.

• Member rewarded services where another member has identified an opportunity that matches your need.

Operation of these services in more detail

You can see more information on each of these services by either clicking on the service title above or by selecting one of the buttons towards the top of this  page. These pages will all return you to this page.

Other pages to see

At the end of the UK finding page, we look at the range of services that can meet the needs within the UK and try to identify which service is best for each case.

The best finding service we have is the H3 executive service, this covers all types of property in the UK and USA.

Have you looked at the handholding services that empower you to undertake the finding operation yourself, H4 covers overseas property and H5 UK property.