Real Estate Investor Magazine South Africa October 2016 | Page 66

LESSONS

Sourcing your

Own Property
BY PIERRE VAN DEN BERG

R

easons for sourcing your own property might
include a keen interest and enough free
time to engage in this challenge; doubting
the credibility of estate agents and/or property
advertisements; or realising you can save a substantial
amount of money. Whatever the reason, its a learning
process and I have had much more success with my
latest sourced property in comparison to my first
attempt.
Rarely should an investor be in a position to have to
urgently find a suitable property. Rather make it a six
months or more project for yourself and investigate
lots of properties. Do your due diligence in as fine
detail as possible before making any decisions. Look
much deeper than the initial excitement of a cash flow
positive scenario, high rent potential, a bargain price,
etc. Don’t regret to walk away from good potential
if necessary. There will always be bargains out there.
Which ever type of property, location or price
class you are after: - a good strategy is to keep a
constant eye on advertisements. Set internet “alerts”
on Gumtree, Property24, etc. to keep you updated
on what is available at what price. Continuing for a
couple of months will give you an excellent reference
framework in order to identify a potential bargain.
An option is also to restrict your searches to “private
sellers”.
An even better strategy is to visit your target
area regularly, and do some “scouting”. I have had
exceptional success in a coastal town by walking

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OCTOBER 2016 SA Real Estate Investor

the streets, talking to locals, meeting local property
investors, and getting familiar with the different
neighbourhoods. Nobody can inform you better
than the locals regarding the favourite living areas,
tenant demand, security risks, potential flooding or
industrial development, etc.
With private sales, try and meet face to face with
the owner at the property. You never know how
informed the seller is, and it may just be that you can
win him over with some good reasoning as to why he
will not get a better offer than yours. This is also an
opportunity to get important information and the real
reason for selling. You should be targeting distressed
sellers.
Not necessarily buying through them, but to keep a
healthy network with estate agents, private investors,
management agents and caretakers in apartment
blocks, investor groups and forums, etc. is crucial to
source good deals.
Master the skill of distinguishing between
trustworthy agents and those just after making
commission. Don’t get fooled by the latter trying
to trick you into a quick transaction and only
emphasising the “highlights” of a property. But pay
serious attention to the comments and advice from
experienced agents in the area you are sourcing.

RESOURCES
www.thanksTo Property.com
www.reimag.co.za