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Five Key Things to look for during a Property Inspection - Buyers Agent Tips Bryce Holdaway - YouTube
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Have you ever inspected a property on a Saturday?
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You arrive at the property, you get out of
the car, you shake the agent's hand, you leave
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your details as you go for a wander through,
and you get back in the car.
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And then later that day, you try and recall
some of the things you remember about that
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property, and you go totally blank.
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If so, you are not alone because people do
this all over this country, every weekend.
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It's large because you go into these properties
with a bit of an emotional journey throughout,
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but it's proudly that if we are going to part
with a lot of money to buy this real estate,
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we need to have a bit of a method or framework
that we go through.
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As a buyer's agent who sees scores and scores
of property on a monthly basis, for me to
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differentiate it and to remember on behalf
of a client, it's important that I have that
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sort of mental checklist that we go through.
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The first one is all about location.
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And a lot of this homework can be done in
advance because there's so much really good
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information that you can get on the internet.
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You can go to Google Earth to check things
out, just to make sure you have a good understanding
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of the particular location that you're going
to look at but nothing actually beats driving
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around yourself and having a bit of a look.
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Because you want to observe the people.
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You want to observe the types of cars people
drive because it gives you a hint as to the
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demographic of the area.
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You want to observe the smells in the area
because if it's too offensive people won't
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want to be there as it might be an indication
that there might be a factory that's upwind
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that's bringing it down.
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So there's nothing that actually does replace
that sort of, looking around the suburb yourself.
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I encourage you to drive around beforehand.
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But I also encourage you to go at different
times of the day because typically you're
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looking on a Saturday morning when everyone's
home.
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Everyone's home from school, home from work,
but you do want to check it out during peak
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hour, and you also want to check it out during
kids' school pick-ups and drop-offs just to
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see if your street becomes a cut through or
a bit of a thoroughfare.
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It's important to not just check it out on
a Saturday morning.
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And equally, you need to have some familiarity
of where the schools and all of the lifestyle
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drivers are if you are coming to that area.
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Where am I going to get my latte?
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Where am I going to get my smashed avocado
on gluten free toast?
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Where are the cafes that I'm going to spend
my time when I am not working?
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But also, when I do go to work, how am I going
to get there?
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Do I go by public transport, can I get to
the train easy?
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Or do I need to catch a bus?
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Or perhaps I need to catch a tram to get to
the train station?
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All of these things are really important considerations.
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So when it comes to location, some of it can
be done in advance.
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But it doesn't mean that you can't not do
that when you get there.
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The second thing that I do when I get out
of the car is looking at the street appeal.
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I would actually stand back from the property,
just have a look, and get some context from
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that property compared to the others.
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Am I looking at a brick house when everything
else is weatherboard?
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Or am I looking at a weatherboard when everything
else is brick?
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I really want to get an understanding of what
is up and down the street so I can get an
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idea of where this one that I am looking at
fits into the overall picture of the suburb.
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And equally, I want to know is there any street
appeal at all?
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Do I look at this property that stands proudly
in the street or is it on the low side of
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the street so you have to look in?
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Or you are at the high end of the street and
you have to look up?
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Or is it just on the flat?
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So, there's lots and lots of things that you
are trying to get a handle on in a short amount
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of time.
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What about the roof?
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Is it a terracotta roof where everything else
is colour bond or vice versa.
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So getting that context is really, really
important.
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But the other thing to keep in mind.
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is if you're planning on buying something
and doing some renovations and some extensions
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to, have a look and see if any of the neighbours
have actually done it before you.
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Are you looking at a property next to someone
who's put an extension up?
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And someone else down the street?
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Which will give you a bit of an indication
that the council is sympathetic to that type
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of thing.
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Or you're looking at a property where no one
has got a second story addition, and you're
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going to be a pioneer.
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Because then, you're going to need to make
sure the council will allow you to do that.
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And the other thing that I think is important
is, don't be afraid to knock on doors of the
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neighbours on either side of the open for
inspection.
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Because you'd be surprised as to how much
information you can get from spending that
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10 or 15 minutes talking to the neighbours.
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You might find out that the reason they're
selling is because down the road they're building
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50 apartments that are suddenly going to increase
density, and there won't be any parking on
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your street.
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Or equally, you might find out that, that
neighbour next door is actually planning on
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putting that extension on and you are on the
wrong side and you are going to get some shadowing
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that will come into it.
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So if you're going to spend half a million,
a million, a million and a half on some real
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estate, invest that 10 or 15 minutes talking
to the neighbours, I can tell you from experience,
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I've got some of my best in-tell in buying
real estate from doing that very thing.
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So the other thing that we need to be thinking
about is the construction of the particular
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property because a lot of modern buildings
around a concrete slab and then they put the
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frame up on the roof.
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But back in the old days, the properties that
were built brick footings, timber floors,
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the timber construction and so we need to
be thinking about stumping.
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Whether there is any subsidence and the other
thing that we need to always be conscious
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of is, older properties require more maintenance.
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And that is something that we need to share
the plan for.
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But the beauty of the older properties are
that they've got that period charm.
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So if you do go the effort and your budget
allows to restore them back to their original
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form, they can come up absolutely stunning
and from a capital growth perspective, they
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can pay a very, very handsome dividend.
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The next thing you want to do is to pay attention
as you're walking through the property, checking
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out things like the floors and the walls and
the quality of the paint, the roofing, all
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those sorts of things that you don't often
think about until later.
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At the second inspections, a lot of people
would go into the property and go, "I didn't
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actually realise that was there", and that
happened because they weren't actually paying
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attention.
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So you want to have a look at the appliances,
are they older appliances, are they in good
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working order, or do they look like they've
been replaced quite recently?
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Importantly, depending on which climate you're
in, does it have the right heating?
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Does it have the right cooling?
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And how old are those things?
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Are they likely to need more maintenance or
are they likely to be something that's been
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put in more recently and won't need much maintenance
at all?
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Have a look at the fixtures and fittings.
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What is the quality of those things?
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Will they need to be replaced?
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Or are they fine as they are?
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And quite often you could comment on the fact
that it's really light and bright in a property,
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but not pay any attention to the fact that
there are no window furnishings whatsoever.
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So when you move in, you're going to have
to go and get those things in place which
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is an additional cost.
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Don't be afraid to walk out the back and look
at the quality of the fence.
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But also, have a little peer over the fence
and see who your neighbours are because you
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don't know who's lurking over that back fence.
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It is important to know who you're about to
get into bed with because you will be spending
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a bit of time in close proximity to your neighbours.
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Then the last thing I do is what I like to
call the ‘Forgotten’ category.
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Because, no one really thinks about the plumbing,
or the electrical, or the roof or the subfloor.
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Is there any water damage?
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Those sorts of things.
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So a little tip is to go and find where the
shower is, and have a look at the wall behind
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the shower.
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See if there are any leaking through the grout,
it might need some maintenance or high moisture
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readings as well.
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I always suggest that people get a building
inspection done.
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Absolutely.
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But you have to spend some money on it, so
it makes sense for you to go and check these
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things out beforehand to give yourself a bit
of an idea.
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Is the electrical board one of the new modern
ones, or is it one of the old and sort of
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dated ones as well which would indicate the
wiring hasn't been done.
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There's a lot that you can do in the inspection,
but the point is very simple.
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You've only got a 30-minute window for these
open-for-inspections, and so, therefore, you've
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got to use your time very, very wisely.
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So that's what a Buyers Agent does.
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As a Buyer’s Agent who is trained to look
at all of these things on behalf of the client
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that they are buying for because they have
been through so many properties that these
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things become commonplace.
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But for those people who aren't going on a
regular basis, it's really important to consider
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all of those things when they are looking
to do a property inspection.
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