COMMERCIAL
• Arrive early for your scheduled viewing .
There are at least 3 benefits to doing this : # 1 you only get one chance to make a great first impression # 2 you get the chance to look at things and walk around in your own time and at your own pace # 3 look at notice boards in the reception area ( they can be revealing ...
• Take the stairs , not the lift .
Other than a good work-out , taking the stairs going up will give you a different perspective to the overall conditions of the complex . Going up slowly will give you time to watch out for important signs like broken windows , overall cleanliness of common areas , presence of duly serviced fire-extinguishers ( check out the service stickers ) and noise levels .
• Come prepared .
Run your Lightstone Property Sectional Title Scheme Report ( if you are viewing a sectional title unit ) before you come to the viewing . You will be able to ask more informed questions and get more value from your engagement with the seller and / or the agent . Access to this type of reports is one of the many great benefits of the membership to our PropertyHack . Club
• Write down a Visit Report within 15 ' from the end of the visit .
Capture what you have seen and observed . You will forget in 1 day , 1 week , 1 month and many deals will happen long after you have seen the property for the 1st time ( if you want to buy below market value ). Don ' t rely on your memory . Once you have seen 20 properties , your memory will play tricks on you .
Write more Offers to Purchase than you think necessary . Writing an Offer to Purchase is not the end of a negotiation process . Use it as the start of the negotiation process . Once you have formalised in writing an Offer to Purchase you have dramatically increased your ability to close the deal at terms and conditions that are acceptable to you .
Do not negotiate verbally . And most importantly accept the fact that 90 % of your offers will not get accepted and the 10 % that gets accepted might get accepted a long time ( sometimes months ) after you first formalised your offer . But having written that offer makes you “ memorable ” in the eyes of the seller and once they have lowered
115 MAY / JUNE 2023 SA Real Estate Investor Magazine