FAQ’s

FAQ’s

Do we have to pay for our first meeting? No.

Are there any additional costs? No, unless agreed at the start (e.g. interstate travel).

Do you receive money from selling agents? No. Never.

Do you receive secret commissions? No. Never.

Why should we use you? Because if you don't know what you are doing you may pay far too much, irrespective of what market we are in. You may buy the wrong property and incur significant costs in the process of reselling in a few years (stamp duty alone is often 3-4 times our fee) or you may simply miss out on a great buy and what you wanted. None of us would walk into your area of expertise and expect to compete on a level playing field with you, nor would we go to court without a lawyer or do our own tax. It is too important a decision to get wrong.

Any proof? Yes. Please read our Case Studies.

What's our guarantee? If you are not completely happy with our service, and we haven't made a purchase for you, then we refund any fees paid upon your request. We average two refunds per year.

We do not take money from selling agents for anything - ever. We do not receive undisclosed commissions from anybody. We have no interest in any of the properties we recommend. These are the cornerstones of how we work and our promises to you. They are in writing, publicly available and we are totally committed to them.

What do our fees cover?

All communications & meetings with you
Searching with or without you for a suitable property
Use of all our databases
Communications/meetings with agents whilst searching for a property
Property rating and ranking with our patent pending "Property Ratings System" - our very own objective property qualification tool.
Preparation of property report(s)
Liaison communications with your solicitor.
Arranging further due diligence checks – pest and building inspections as required (you are required to pay for these separately but we can liaise and organise them for you without financial benefit to us)
Negotiation tactics and strategy
Execution of strategies to purchase the property
Checking final contracts pre signatures
Pre settlement inspections
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Your Privacy

We are subject to the Privacy Act. We do not reveal the names of our clients to anybody (a) without their permission; or (b) unless it is in the normal course of signing contracts etc.

All references on this site are genuine and were provided by clients who were happy to have their names revealed.

Declarations & Conflict

Owing to the amount of properties James Buyer Advocates purchases there are many occasions where conflict is possible. However we have always felt it's not the conflict itself, but how you handle it, that’s the real issue. This is how we handle those situations.

It can be a conflict to receive money from a selling agent. Our solution: we never receive any money from selling agents - ever. We never have and we never will.

It can be a conflict to recommend properties where we know the seller, have a business relationship with the seller or have an interest in the property being sold. Our solution: we always declare to you the current client if we know the seller.

It can be a conflict to recommend third party advisors if you are paid by them. Example: Lawyers, building and pest inspectors, architects, town planners etc. Our solution: we don’t pay or receive commissions from anybody but you - we are only paid by you and we don’t pay for work referred to us.

It can be a conflict to take on a new client for a specific property when we already have a client looking at the same property. Our solution: we don't take on the new client for that specific property if we have already started a property report for an existing client.

It is a conflict where we have two clients who become interested in the same property. This does occasionally happen as we deal with a lot in investors and some of our owner occupier clients change their YOUR NEEDS profile. Our solution to this difficult issue is openness :

We tell both parties
We prepare the same Property Report in all aspects except YOUR NEEDS.
We have one of our principals handle each client. We don’t discuss any client details with other clients.
While we cannot encourage one party NOT to bid (eg have our own private auction to determine a winner) because of recent legislation forbidding it, we can inform the other party if one person is no longer interested.

If you are not happy with this, we refund any engagement fee if requested and also, if requested, refer you onto another REIV approved advocate.

But let’s keep this in perspective. We have never had two clients bidding on the same property in all our years of operating in this business, but it could happen as we have a policy of referring all relevant properties to every client even if that means the same property is referred to more than one client This is about recognizing the potential for conflict. There will almost always be competition on good property and on the rare occasion that this happens within our company, we will be completely straight and inform you so as you can make an informed decision. We are committed to being open and honest with our clients at all times.

More FAQs

We are asked a myriad of questions every day over the phone, at auctions, at parties and before people engage us. Below are some of the more common questions we get and the answers we usually give.

What are buyer advocates? Buyer advocates or buyer agents are agents who should work exclusivelyfor the property buyer. We do. There are some similarities between a good selling agent and a good buying advocate, but we work for opposite sides.

What is an advocate's primary role in the deal? The job of a good advocate is to establish what you actually want (ie. Your Needs), find or confirm the right property for the buyer (via our comprehensive Property Report), and organise other independent inspections, such as pest, building and legal. A good advocate reduces the price of purchase where possible, performs extensive due diligence on a selected property, and informs the buyer of both the positives and negatives of the purchase in mind.

Why doesn't everybody use an advocate? Actually, many people do, especially in overseas countries. In Melbourne, the numbers are growing and we estimate 1 in 4 buyers use an advocate or seek independent professional advice.

When should I use an advocate? We suggest you seek buying advice on every property transaction, the same as you would do if you were selling. You are making a huge investment, so make sure it is right.

I don't need help. Not everybody can see the benefits of an advocate. Some people do their own tax, represent themselves in court and sell their own home. That's OK by us - we are only providing a choice.

If you are really good, why aren't advocates well known? Although we are becoming better known, we do not sell properties for a start and therefore our company exposure is limited to our own advertising. We rarely advertise as most of our business is referral-based or word of mouth. Other reasons include: historical reasons - selling agents were here first; we provide very little revenue to the media; there are fewer advocates than agents; and
it is in our clients' interest to have a lower profile.

Research, Planning and Advice

What is involved in your research? Our research is comprehensive and exhaustive. We have several comprehensive databases available, and also access to public and Government records including Valuer General, Council and Agent records. We also search land data maps, titles and section 32 information. We visit all comparable properties, and monitor open inspections, bidders, areas and other properties. We profile the agent, auctioneer, the owner and the auctioneer. And we communicate as one professional to the other.

Are all these records available to the general public? No.

How do you handle the emotional side of purchasing property? At crunch time we operate without emotion and with purpose. Although we experience a range of emotions from our clients, we focus on getting the job done in your best interests.

Do you prepare a buying plan on a family home? Yes, it is just like any investment and is usually the biggest you'll make.

Which is best - positive or negative gearing? We concentrate on looking for long-term capital growth; however, less growth for better gearing is a legitimate strategy in many circumstances.

Auctions, Offers, Inspections and Negotiation

Is there still dummy bidding? Dummy bidding at auctions has reduced dramatically since new legislation was introduced. However, the legislation only covers you for the 15 minutes of a live auction. What about after the auction or before? What about private sale – now the most common form of sale? You are not covered.

What about dummy bidders and under-quoting? While they worry the inexperienced, they do not affect how we do business. In fact, they often help. Unfortunately, legislation cannot completely stop dummy bidding.

Do you bid at auction/private sale or can we? Either way, it's your call.

If I have already made an offer, or the auction is this weekend, is it too late to use an advocate? No.

Can you buy on my behalf even if I am not here? Yes, we do that for overseas clients regularly.

Can you help with paperwork? Yes, we understand the intricacies of contracts and section 32's. We recommend your solicitor reads them prior to any purchase.

What about building inspections, finance and tax? We can arrange inspections and meeting with other professionals if required. We do not charge or receive any referral fee for this service. Our recommendations are genuine.

How do you negotiate? Aggressively or meekly as our instinct tells us. Openly or in secret as our experience tells us.

How do you arrive at a price to accept? Research, experience and “real” information .

So you can do everything for us? Not quite. We deal with your financial adviser, your accountant, your architect and your solicitor where appropriate. We specialise in property. We bring together the outside expertise as it is needed if you do not already have it.

Agents

Why can't a selling agent help me? Good selling agents do help to a point, but, as required by Victorian legislation (Estate Agents Act) a selling agent must act in the best interests of his/her seller (vendor). He or she does not, and should not, work for you, the buyer. Agents would like to work for both sides and have it both ways, but when you think about, they cannot possibly do both effectively.

Do you give agents a hard time? Rarely - most are professional; but if the need arises, and our clients are best served by such actions, then yes. We can play hard ball too!

Do you respect selling agents? We receive news of many unadvertised properties from good agents. Some are very good at their job. Yes, we respect the good ones.

A selling agent offered to help us buy - no charge! There are many reasons why that may not be in your best interests. There is no such thing as a free lunch.

Other Questions

Are your clients looking for investments or homes? About 80% are homebuyers and 20% investors. We buy units, land, homes and commercial properties.

How much do your clients spend? We have bought $300,000 land sites as well as multi-million dollar properties.

What else do you do besides buy? We organise leasing and general property advice and we give selling advice, but we do not sell.

What areas have you purchased in? All of Melbourne, regional areas and both peninsulas. We have also bought interstate and we deal through affiliates overseas if the need arises.

Is there any property you don't recommend? Many.

How long does it take to buy? If a client has a specific property in mind, it can take 1 day to 4 weeks (or longer). Otherwise, on average it takes 1-3 months.

Should I buy now or wait? Now is a good time to buy good property and now is a good time to let bad property pass you by.

I am still a little unsure and I have more questions?

Please contact us. As a client, we can help you answer questions like:

How much do I spend? Am I acting too quickly? Is it for sale now? But the auction is this weekend, can you help? How can I not pay too much? What's it worth? Is it a good deal? I'm too emotional, can you help? But I'm scared – will I miss out? I've been looking for too long, what can I do? Should I buy now? Should I sell first? Should I renovate or relocate? I've got no time and I'm stressed, can you help? The agent is tricky or very nice or useless or not ringing me, what do I do? What is an Expression of Interest or a Tender or a Set Sale? How do I make an offer when the asking price is so high? Are you downsizing, getting married, separating, having children, have elderly parents or a disabled relative or just need a change?