Helping you on your investment journey - Why are we different?

Senior Investment Consultant, Michael Johns looks at investors ever changing needs & how Residential Estates set themselves apart when meeting & surpassing investors expectations.

The property investment landscape is an ever changing, diverse landscape.

Sometimes the best solution requires a complex analysis of the market and a multi-layered solution….in most instances, it’s very simple.

Our most important task initially, is to listen to you to understand your requirements, preferences and opinions.  After all, there is no one solution that fits all purposes.  We are all different. We have different goals, ambitions, expectations, and short, medium & long term requirements.

This first, important step can be our biggest challenge.  When you have been providing high-performing solutions for as long as we have, it’s sometimes difficult to hold back our enthusiasm for what we do.  Especially when we get to speak to you directly, a valued investor.
Sometimes we can immediately see the opportunity and it is sometimes difficult to hold back from bombarding you with information to make use of the little time you may have available for us when we first talk or meet. 
Don’t mistake this for a raw sales pitch. 
Our next steps will prove our good intentions.

Here are some key areas where we differ from other companies in this industry:

Despite our extensive knowledge and insight into the best available opportunities available at any time on the UK market, we spend more time educating our clients than we do trying to sell to them.  We are not afraid to share insider information and the way we operate as we believe that we a valuable partner for any property investor.  Not everyone makes the right decision when they first invest in property, and we are happy to help those who need advice or portfolio re-structuring.

We have a library of educational blogs, videos, free monthly webinars and personal consultations face-to-face or through video or telephone calls.

A typical online sales agent will normally try to sell you the property you have enquired about…..after all, nothing can be more simple….you’ve already shown an interest so the sale is half-way there. Statistically, only 30% of these investors will every invest in property again.  A good property investment consultant will use this information to understand what is important to you.  What attracted you to this property?  Does this property actually deliver what you are expecting from it?  Do we have any other options that will give you a better result?  Over 90% of our new clients will buy a different property than the one they first enquired about.

Spending more time with less prospects enables us to fully understand our clients, develop meaningful, prosperous, long term relationships which actually make a significant difference to peoples lives, financially.
Over 70% of our sales are either repeat buyers or referrals.

Potential clients all have individual circumstances and comfort levels which will define their ideal time to invest. Being unsympathetic to personal circumstances and ignoring individual comfort zones will lead to the investor focusing on the negative elements of the investment and ultimately, resentment and dissatisfaction. 

Most potential buyers will start their journey with their own research, understanding how any investment will impact their personal situation such as taxation, liquidity and lifestyle. 

A good investment requires good timing, and this means buying at the right time for themselves, not the right time for the seller.  Sometimes, as great opportunities arise, quick decisions will be required, but this must always be made within the comfort zone of the investor.

Investors come to us at different times, some are immediately ready to invest and are just waiting for the right opportunity. Others are at the start of their journey and require time. 
The average time an investor takes to invest, from the day they first speak to us is 3 months.

At any time, there are thousands of properties available on the internet via hundreds of sellers.  Many are listed with multiple sellers on multiple platforms.  This is usually a sign of a property or development which is part of a developers ongoing build schedule and not a carefully targeted opportunity based on demand, growth demographics and the end-user market.

Some of these opportunities can turn out to be lucrative, but in most cases they are based on media-hype and low land acquisition costs.  With many developers following the same criteria, this can lead to over-saturation despite these areas previously being identified as ‘hot-spots’.  Remember that developers are generally only interested in selling the properties and not with how they will perform for investors once they’ve moved onto their next ‘project’. 

As a company who offer a complete solution to their investors, including flexible short and long term lettings solutions and re-sales (and in many cases, property management too), the success of the investment to the investor as a whole is critical to our success and reputation.  Therefore, the accuracy of our due diligence is critical, and our proactive sourcing model (working with established and reputable developers who will find opportunities exclusively for us in the best locations) means that we decline to sell more than 85% of the properties and new property developments which are offered to us!

 Finally, we are not tied to any other company.  We have 100% flexibility and our investments are based purely on maximising the returns for our investors and the security of their money.  This enables us to offer solutions for all requirements and preferences and enables us to move quickly into any new market or opportunity.  With our extensive experience and knowledge of the market, we have created an unrivalled track record and can prove our successes to you before you invest.

Michael Johns