Real Estate Matters | The Most Important Questions To Ask……..

Juliet Risdon

Juliet Risdon is a Director of JML Property and a property investor.
Having established the company in 1994, JML Property offers Investment Property & Homes. It specializes in managing properties for owners and investors, and providing attractive and comfortable homes for tenants.

Just a reminder about this series before we look at the next 6 questions;
All property transactions are sizeable when compared with most other decisions.
It follows that you would give these transactions the time and effort that they warrant, but this does not always happen. It sometimes isn’t so much an issue of motivation, but rather a case of now knowing the right questions to ask.
This series deals with the key questions for each party. Knowing the answers to these questions should help to avoid misunderstandings and in many cases will save time, money or both.

When you are buying a property
Making a few notes on the questions below may save you hundreds of thousands of dollars on the price of property, but more importantly they may save you from making a bad decision one way or the other.
Last week we looked at five questions. If you missed them please do send us an e mail at the address at the bottom of the page and we will be happy to send them through to you. Let’s continue…
6- How long has the property been on the market?
This is arguably the most important question of all, one that will offer a lot of insight into how desirable the property is.
The longer a property has been listed, the less attractive it is, and anything over 6 months would trigger further questions such as ‘what’s wrong with this place’ ?

7- Is there anything that you would want to know about the property if you were buying?
This question usually catches agents off guard, and in doing so may reveal some of things that they had decided they were NOT going to tell you.
At least this question should open up a true and frank discussion on their opinion whatever it may be.

8- How much are the bills such as the management fees, government tax and utility bills ?
If possible, try to get a copy of the most recent bill.
As a buying expense the cost will seem relatively small, but as a monthly or yearly recurring expense they can really add up.

9- How long have the previous occupants lived there?
The reason for asking this question is to gain insight into any potential problems there may be with the building or neighbors.
Leaving after a relatively short time would of course be a warning sign, and whilst it may not be a complete red flag, it does give you reason for further investigation.

10- What room is there for negotiation?
Always an important question, but again one that will give you a closer look at the sellers mindset.
A seller willing to accept a low ball offer may be hiding something, and we are conditioned to suspect such offers being accepted too quickly.
It may be a genuine bargain for a genuine reason, but tread carefully if this is the case.

11- What is the minimum price the seller will accept?
It may sound crazy, but asking the sellers bottom line can save you hundreds of thousands.
Property agents will often give you an indication, their interest is in making a sale even at a lower price, because if they don’t sell they don’t get paid.

Next week; The final 6 questions that all buyers should ask.

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