Seller’s Agent
SCENARIO: You find a property that you might like to purchase, you call the phone number on the footpath for-sale sign, you are answered by the “Seller’s Agent.” Ethically, the Seller’s Agent is obliged to place the best interests of the property seller before yours. Although the Seller’s Agent will be polite and courteous to you, do not be deceived, it is his or her job to extract as much money from you for the seller benefit. For example, a Seller’s Agent might say to you: “The buyer is asking $450,000, but you would probably get it. for $390,000”. In such a case he or she would have committed a professional ethics offence against the best interests of the seller, for the benefit of him/herself through an easier sale, and quick commission. The exception being only if the seller permitted disclosure of their willingness to accept less.
Buyer’s Agent
As a licensed real estate broker I can act as either a Buyer’s or a Seller’s Agent. BUT, for the most part, I am a “Buyer’s Agent”. If you engage me in this official capacity, I am legally and ethically obliged to put your best interest before mine, and before the seller. As such, if I exercise my obligations to you faithfully, I will actually be reducing the potential commissions I will earn because my mandate includes getting you the best deal possible; and my commissions are paid on the purchase price.
And that’s okay, because for over 40 years I have developed a network of thousands of happy buyers, and those buyers refer many other people to me. This is what happens when a Buyer’s Agent plays the long-game, reducing expenses and capital outlay for clients so that they can succeed financially; and then come back for more. This is why it is advisable that you look for a reliable real estate agent like Rainer Schorr so you can ensure that you are getting the best deals in the market.
Some of the things I do FOR YOU as YOUR Buyer’s Agent
- Heavy Discounts on Property Purchase Prices – Immediate Capital Gain
One of the most successful approaches I have for my clients is to group multiple investors with similar budgets and buy up multiple residential properties within the same development. When I knock on the door of the developer with a pre-approved $10-million combined budget, and 20 investors, you just know the developer is going to do some good deals. When this happens, there is an immediate capital gain on the property from day one because the purchase price is less than the market price. More often than not, when you do not use a Buyer’s Agent, you have a capital loss on day one because of all the associated expenses with the acquisition.
- Carefully Researched Tax Reduction Eligibility
There are many tax considerations for real estate investors. A diligent Buyer’s Agent will help their investors find properties that can maximise capital gain while minimising taxes. For example, my team identifies properties that have significant depreciation schedules available, which in turn allow us to obtain substantial tax withholding variations from the Australian Tax Office. What this means is that the properties we source for our investors allow for depreciation on the actual building structure as a tax-deductible expense, this is in addition to the tax deductible interest paid on the investment loan. It is a double whammy as they say, and the tax variation combined with rental income actually pays off the property.
- Guaranteed Tenants
I’m also committed to securing guaranteed, multi-year tenants as a condition of sale for my clients’ investment properties. This takes the burden off the investor for finding, interviewing and deciding on the best tenants for their property, and places it squarely on the shoulders of the developer, who will often put property managers in place.
- Tax Withholding Variations
Once you have purchased the property, our team can help you obtain an official withholding variation, as discussed above, from the Australian Tax Office. This means that the taxes customarily withheld from your salary will be reduced by your employer, which puts more cash in your hand each week. However, although this is your money, it is NOT really your money, do not spend it! Every penny of these reduced tax funds must be used to pay for maintenance on your property, and to pay down the principal as soon as possible. If you follow my instructions here, your financial situation will improve so fast that your cash flow will allow the acquisition of another investment property, much sooner than otherwise; and definitely much sooner than it would if you bought a boat with your tax reductions .
