When you’re searching for property, finding the ideal house or block of land can feel all consuming. Many of our clients tell us that they spend an exorbitant amount of time on realestate.com.au without ever finding anything suitable. A lot of that time online is fruitless when you don’t know exactly what you’re looking for.

They often come to us with the same questions. What’s the best way to find the ideal property? Then once you’ve found it, what do you need to do to make sure you secure it?

Engaging a Capital Properties buyers agent means we answer these questions and more to ensure you find your perfect property. Our Capital Properties 7-step process allows us to short list suitable property options, and we work with you to ensure you have everything you need to make offers and close the sale. The first step of this process is locking down your requirements and our Capital Properties Buyer Checklist is the perfect place to start.

On the go? Here’s 30 seconds of take outs:

  • Online property searches are time consuming and often unsuccessful.
  • Capital Properties 7-step process helps you to find suitable property options.
  • Asking some essential questions (see below) before your property search will save you time.
  • The Capital Properties Buyer Checklist helps to streamline the purchasing decision across these key areas:
  • FINANCE: know your budget & secure pre-approval or conditional approval.
  • CONTRACT CONDITIONS: be prepared to negotiate conditions of sale, including purchase subject to finance, pest inspections, due diligence etc.
  • DEPOSITS: make a small initial deposit.
  • SETTLEMENT: figure out your most realistic time frame – 28-days is standard.
  • LOCATION: choosing the best location also depends on the type of property you want.
  • SIZE: consider land size & use for residential, commercial, industrial or development.
  • STYLE: the style will vary according to personal taste, e.g. modern or contemporary.
  • FEATURES: what does the property need to have, e.g. air conditioning, solar power etc.

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ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS

When kicking off this Capital Properties Buyer Checklist you must first ask yourself what specific type of property you’re looking for. For example:

  • Is the property primarily an investment? Will you live in it for period of time? Think through the lifetime of the property from purchase to eventual sale.
  • What does the property need to offer? We suggest you create a list of the must haves. For example, you might require four bedrooms with ensuite bathrooms, two living areas and a double garage with some room to tinker.
  • Are there specific requirements for the area that you need to buy in? For example, do you have certain regions/suburbs in mind? Do you need proximity to infrastructure/amenities such as public transport etc.
  • What are you willing to compromise on? Although it’s good to have a wish list, the reality is it’s rare to find a property with everything that you want (within budget). If you’re going to have to make a compromise somewhere, then decide what’s important before you become emotionally invested.

YOUR PROPERTY BUYER CHECKLIST

In this blog post we’ll share some tips to help you choose the best location and speed up your property search. The Capital Properties Buyer Checklist will streamline the process for you to ensure you have a clear picture of what you want and a strategy to get it. Try to be specific as possible when working through this list for the best outcome.

FINANCE

We start with finance, simply because it’s the best place to start. When you know your budget and have finance sorted, you’ll have the confidence to start making offers and be in the best possible position to negotiate on properties.

  • Talk with your mortgage broker or banker about getting your finance pre-approval or conditional approval in place.

CONTRACT CONDITIONS

Take time to think about what types of conditions you might want to insert in the contract prior to making offers. Then when your offer is accepted you can communicate those conditions through the vendors agent.

Here are some examples of contract conditions to communicate with your offer:

  • Subject to finance
  • Subject to approval building pest inspections
  • Subject to due diligence
  • Subject to the style of another property

As there are some unfortunate schemes that set out to con potential buyers, having a buyers agent to help you negotiate the conditions of sale is wise. For example, your buyers agent can provide title searches to confirm if the seller is the actual owner.

DEPOSITS

As buyer, you can negotiate when deposits are paid. We recommend that you put down a small initial deposit of approximately $1,000. Then the balance deposit will be due once the contract of sale goes unconditional.

SETTLEMENT

The settlement terms are one of the key negotiating contract conditions in purchasing. In ‘hot’ markets vendors prefer shorter time frames, so its advantageous if you can settle quickly. However, you need to be realistic that you can achieve those milestones.

Consider what you’ll need to achieve to meet your ideal settlement timeframe first, and then work out what the pessimistic time frame might be.  The realistic time frame might sit somewhere in between. A 28-day settlement is a pretty standard timeline. Longer settlement periods would apply to properties without a finance cause.

LOCATION

You can’t decide on a location without also considering what type of property you’re looking for. This is where the answers to the first question above will come into play. For example, decide if you’re purchasing a home to live in or buying an investment property? If it’s an investment, are you focused on residential, commercial and/or industrial? Are you considering using the property as holiday home? Is the purchase for your business and/or for development? Each of these different scenarios should strongly influence your decision-making process about where is best place to buy.

To settle on the best location, create a wish list with some broad areas of interest or specific suburbs and concentrate your search there.

SIZE

When considering the size of the property, you must first think about the size of the land. Is the land suitable for residential, commercial, industrial or development? Clarify how many bedrooms/bathrooms/living areas you require. Will open plan or separate living be best? How much off-street parking is required for vehicles?

STYLE

There are many different construction methods, so this comes down to personal taste. For example, do you prefer brick veneer over timber weatherboard? What styles suit your personality? Modern or contemporary? Are you more likely to choose a Queensland colonial style, workers cottage or art deco? Are you looking for an un-renovated project, or a turnkey project?

FEATURES

Consider what property features you want/need? For example, in hotter climates air conditioning is a must. If sustainability is important, then properties with solar power/batteries are worth the investment. If you, or any potential future buyer, is likely to work from home then the property will require access to technology like NBN or 5G mobile phone coverage. If you want to keep animals, you’ll need to consider fencing and water supply. Or you might want a pool and/or views?

This Capital Properties Buyer Checklist should give you a good start in formulating a buying strategy. It will also help you to narrow down and create a short list for your property search. Spending a few moments to consider these points will end up saving you heaps of time and stress and allow you to focus on getting you exactly what you’re after.

As always, our Capital Properties buyers agent service is available to help you source all types of property options. A great place to start is with our Free Discovery Session which will give you a taste of what it’s like to work with us. Then our follow-up Strategy Session will help nail a plan to help you find your perfect property and achieve your goals.