Finding a Power Team
Starting out in property can be daunting. So, you’ve taken your time working out what your strategy will be based on your money and time available, you’ve found your initial investment area. Now, for the most important bit - you have to find a power team!
Power teams can make or break a deal. Also, when looking for your power team keep in mind that “if you pay peanuts, you get monkeys”!
You need to have a strong team to make this work, for me this consists of:
Accountant
Solicitor
Builder
Surveyor
Insurance broker
Letting Agent
Sourcing Agent
Estate Agent
Coach/Mentor
Accountant
Look for an accountant who understands (and preferably has worked in) property. You perhaps need to speak with a few accountants to find someone who understands your situation and how you want to build your portfolio. I found my accountant through recommendation and instantly knew he was the right person to be working with. Working with my accountant as soon as I had decided to get into property helped me to understand the most tax efficient way to buy property and manage business from the start - it in fact super charged my investment journey! We have a great relationship, which has paid untold dividends in getting deals over the line.
Solicitor
I’ve worked with quite a few solicitors. Always go with recommendations from current clients. You are looking for a solicitor that understands your process and can work fast when the time is needed. Get a good few recommendations and interview a few solicitors - either via email or phone. Find out what their fees are, what mortgage boards they sit on (as there are often only a few lenders I can go to for my deals this is super important), and how fast they are able to complete paperwork in a normal purchase, as well as in case of a corporate sale which often has to be completed very quickly and you can be gazumped throughout the whole process. My solicitor 100% has my back on deals and she is excellent at negotiating with the other side when their requests become unreasonable or when I encounter a problem during the purchase.
Builder
I do LOADS of due diligence on builders (and even then I have still had/have problems)….So, I’ll probably do another blog just on working with builders! To find your builder, get recommendations from local letting agents and landlords, look online at websites that rate builders and google them and their business name to see what comes up in the search results. Then meet a few. Go on viewings with them and get to know them and see how well you may be able to work together. Talk to them about their work process and how they like to get paid. Ask them to put together a quote for the house you have viewed and also go and see at least one of their previous projects. Score builders on a system of how well you get on with them, how highly they are recommended, cost of quote, time to finish builds and the finish of their builds. Take a view - you’re probably not going to find the perfect builder - if you do pass him my number!
Surveyor
Again, I go for recommendations in order to find a surveyor. A good surveyor can save you a lot of money - by acting as a second level of checks on what refurb might be needed, and that you are buying the property at the right cost. A home buyers survey gives you a good idea of what refurb is immediately needed and what may be needed in the future. It gives you the current valuation of the property and the reinstatement cost (needed for insurance purposes). Of course, if you buy with a mortgage they will send their own surveyor, its up to you if you also want an extra survey done.
Insurance Broker
Ask around and see what insurance broker other landlords are using. You can trail a few to see what quotes they get on buildings insurance, how fast they move and how they deal with more complex requests.
Letting Agent
A great letting agent is worth their weight in gold! I look for an agent that can handle pretty much all house issues without contacting me. Remember there are two ‘p’s in property - ‘people’ and ‘problems’ … do not get into property if you expect a fully passive income - there are always problems! So, start with this in mind and get letting agent recommendations, ideally you want them to be ARLA agents. You should ask for copies of their agreements and their ASTs, their process for finding and checking tenants, sign up fees to you, monthly management fees (and whether this is a proportion of rent collected or holds whether rent is collected or not), how they deal with minor issues i.e. deducting this from rent or holding cash on account. Speak with as many agents as possible and see who you click with… also it’s not a good idea to negotiate them down on their management fees (at least until you pass them lots of properties), as you want them to like you and do a good job! If you’re really not sure, trial a few letting agents … one for each new property you bring on board and make a decision after a year (check their procedures for cancelling a contract or how long your contract with them lasts).
Sourcing Agent
If you are cash rich but time poor, a great sourcing agent will get you to financial freedom at high speed! Again, go for recommendation when using a sourcing agent. Meet with your sourcing agent and see how well you click. Check they are compliant and part of an ombudsman redress scheme with liability insurance, ICO registration and HMRC anti money laundering. Remember, you must ALWAYS do your own due diligence on properties sent to you… run the numbers yourself, double check sold and let comparables and speak with letting agents in the area of the property to learn more about the property and the area. Find out how many properties your agent has sourced before, their experience in property and if you are doing a buy, refurbish and re-sell strategies find out about your agents knowledge of that cycle and re-valuation figures. Also, speak with them about whether they can manage the buying process for you, the refurbish/letting process and any extra fees for this.
Estate Agents
If you are hunting for your own deals, make friends with local estate agents. Make an effort to be friendly and get to know them, also aim to be memorable - for the right reasons! I recommend that when you start off in an area to block book viewings with certain estate agents until you get to know them. If you’re in the area pop by with chocolates, go to viewings that don’t necessarily match your strategy (they may just need to get viewing numbers up on a certain property and will appreciate you helping them with this. Be friendly and approachable throughout the buying process and thank them for their help during the process… as a side note I prefer working with estate agents than direct to vendor as they protect me and my time from the often crazy over expectations and paranoia of a vendor! When you’re offering on a property don’t offer too low as to be ridiculous, and always give an explanation for offering low … i.e. needs new boiler/damp etc. Always act in a way that means you are perceived as someone they would like to work with … especially if you are buying a property (so no bad mouthing other investors/agents, don’t gazump other investors - even on repo’s, don’t act heartless by wanting to kick out long term tenants from properties, and don’t randomly start offering lower on a property after your offer is accepted). My hope is that this is naturally you anyway!
Coach/Mentor
I would be literally be no where without having had a coach/mentor. They really help accelerate your journey. If you are looking for a coach/mentor look for recommendations and see who you click with. You MUST MUST do your due diligence! Check out everything you can about the person coaching you to make sure they are what they say they are (especially if they are coaching you on a specific strategy). You must work with them to help set and reach the goals that you want to achieve. Working with a coach, requires you to put in the work. So, if you’ve set goals together it’s up to you to go out and achieve those goals by next time you meet them - ideally exceeding the targets you’ve set yourself each time. Remember, it’s not a silver bullet! You need to put in the hard graft!!
Do you have any other tips to add to finding your power team? Let me know in the comments below!
Ana ♡
Want to connect? Find me on insta @dranaattlee, or why not pop along to a meet up? If you think I can accelerate your journey to your goals get in touch or book a coaching session!