Emile Salame, founder of Cornerstone Asset Advisors Ltd, is a real estate portfolio manager who has extensive experience of helping people to find properties in London. This article will provide an overview of the key responsibilities of property finders, outlining their benefits for buyers.
A property finder is essentially someone who helps buyers to identify the right property for them. Either an individual specialist or a company offering property finding services, property finders also help buyers to negotiate the best price.
Taking into consideration the unique needs of each individual client, property finders identify properties most likely to align with their specific wants and needs. Property finders work closely with clients, identifying their circumstances and key objectives before setting to work identifying best-fit properties.
Benefiting from extensive industry knowledge and experience as well as far-reaching networks of local contacts, property finders help buyers to find the right property for them, even enabling clients to access options that have yet to be placed on the market. Enlisting the help of a property finder relieves prospective purchasers of the burden of trawling through real estate listings and viewing property after property themselves, saving significant hassle for time-poor individuals, particularly those who are relocating.
A key benefit of working with a property finder is their ability to access options that are being sold discreetly or yet to be placed on the market. Benefiting from long-established relationships with estate agents built over the course of years of successful transactions, property finders are ‘in the know’ about hidden opportunities, enabling buyers to access options that unrepresented buyers are unaware of.
Benefiting from in-depth local knowledge, property finders can make clients aware of issues that may not be immediately apparent from the property particulars, such as warning them that the house is on a flight path or tipping them off about planning proposals for adjacent properties. While viewing a property with a selling agent can provide prospective buyers with a good amount of information, there may be elements that are simply beyond the agent’s remit. For example, the property may be a listed building or lie within a conservation area that has special rules in place. Property finders dig deeper, arming clients with vital insights, enabling them to make better-informed purchasing decisions.
Achieving the lowest possible purchase price is a key priority for any buyer. Negotiation strategies hinge upon a range of different factors, including the position of the buyer, the position of the seller, the condition of the property and the strength of the local market. Property finders carefully weigh up all of these factors when entering into negotiations on behalf of clients, tailoring strategies to each unique scenario to achieve the best possible outcome.
Property finders not only find the perfect property for clients but assist them throughout the buying process. Once the buyer’s offer is accepted, the property finder stewards the buyer through the pre-contract process, including instructing a solicitor and surveyor. Once an independent surveyor has prepared a thorough report on the property, the property finder will review it, highlighting key points and handling renegotiations where necessary. Property finders also ensure communications with solicitors are frequent and that the transaction proceeds in a timely manner.
Identifying the perfect property and negotiating its sale can be an extremely challenging process, particularly in big cities like London. Placing the needs of clients first and foremost, property finders support buyers from the initial stages of the transaction through to completion. Providing game-changing support to time-strapped clients, property finders leverage their extensive experience and local knowledge to help clients access the best properties and achieve the best deals in highly competitive markets.
