I find it
Estate agents, direct to vendor, auction and off market. Most of what I see fails the checks and you never hear about it. That filtering is the job.
Buyer-only sourcing, South Yorkshire and North Notts
Buy well up north, without being here.
You're busy, or you're 3,000 miles away. Either way you can't spend your Tuesdays driving round Doncaster looking at houses that were flattering in the photographs. So I do it, and I only work for you.
I take no commission from sellers. Ever. That's the whole point of it.
The honest problem
Down south the numbers stopped working.
A house near you costs eight or nine times what it earns in a year. Up here it can cost twelve or thirteen times what it earns in a month. That gap is why people look north.
The trouble is what happens next. You don't know the streets. You can't tell from a listing whether that road is fine or whether it's the reason the price is low. You haven't got Thursdays free to find out, and the estate agent showing you round is being paid by the person selling it to you.
So most people either overpay for something tidy, or they stall for two years and buy nothing at all.
- You can't see it. Photos are taken on a wide lens on the one sunny day that month.
- You don't know the street. Two roads apart can be a £15,000 difference and a completely different tenant.
- Nobody is on your side. The agent works for the seller. Most sourcers take a cut from them too.
- You have no time. Viewings, chasing solicitors, finding a builder you can trust from 200 miles away.
What I actually do
I'm on your side of the table.
Not an agent, not a portal, not a course. A buyer's agent on the ground where you are buying, paid by you and nobody else.
I go and look at it
In person, with a camera. You get a full walkthrough video and notes the same day, including the things an agent would rather you didn't notice.
I check it properly
Crime, flood, EPC and the route to a C, legal title, comparable sales and a rent figure that survives contact with reality. You get the workings.
I negotiate it
With no seller-side commission pulling the other way. This is where your money is actually made, and it's the part most people give away.
I see it through
Solicitors, brokers, surveys, the chasing. My fastest completion was 6 weeks. You get updates without asking for them.
I hand it over working
Refurb managed by trades I've used myself, utilities on, management in place. An asset that pays, not a project that nags.
The record, in full
Four of them, with the numbers in full.
I've sourced 16 properties at 10 to 20% below market value. Four of them are written up below in full, with the asking price, what was actually paid and what happened next.
23 Beech Grove
Carlton in Lindrick, Nottinghamshire
£125,000 £90,000
Bought 28% below the original asking price after two reductions.
7 Ashley Terrace
Worksop, Nottinghamshire
£78,000 £65,000
Negotiated £15,000 below the reduced asking price.
55 Hunt Lane
Bentley, Doncaster
£70,000 £61,500
Bought for an overseas investor who never set foot in the country.
150 Long Lane
Carlton in Lindrick, Nottinghamshire
£85,000 £78,000
A probate sale recovered after it had already fallen through once.
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Every completion gets the same photograph.
Keys in hand, at the door, on the day. These are further properties I've sourced and handed over. Figures on those are available on request rather than published, because I only put numbers on this site that I can evidence.
- Wood Avenue
- The Willows
- King Georges Road Rossington, Doncaster
- Ely Road
- Boughton Lane
- The Crescent
- Hawthorne Way
From first call to keys
Eight steps, and you know where you are at every one.
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A straight conversation
What you want the money to do, what you can deploy, and what your timeline looks like. If we are not the right fit we will say so on this call rather than three weeks in.
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We agree the brief
Written criteria: area, budget, strategy, the returns you need and the things you will not accept. Terms are signed so you know exactly what you are buying from us.
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We search and we filter
Estate agents, direct to vendor, auction and off-market. Most of what we see fails the checks. You do not hear about those, which is the point.
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We view it for you
In person, on video, with honest notes. You see the damp patch and the neighbour’s garden, not just the wide-angle lounge shot.
How I get paid
A fixed fee, agreed up front, mostly paid at the end.
No commission from sellers. No percentage of the purchase price, which would only reward me for letting you pay more. One fee, agreed before I start, paid in three stages.
- 10%on instruction, when I start work
- 40%at memorandum of sale, when the property is agreed
- 50%on completion, when you have the keys
Which means nine tenths of what you pay me depends on me actually delivering.
Buying from outside the UK
You don't need to be in the country.
I've bought for investors who never set foot in England. Hunt Lane in Doncaster was one of them: £61,500, let at £650 a month, a 12.7% gross yield, handled start to finish remotely.
There's more to get right from abroad. Ownership structure, tax, the currency transfer, who holds the keys. I've got a library on all of it and a path built for it.
What I sort out for you
- Freehold, not leasehold
- Buy personally or through a UK company
- Full remote viewings on video
- Currency transfer at a fair rate
- Management arranged before you complete
- AML and ID handled properly, first time
Being straight with you
I'm not right for everyone.
This works if you
- Have funds ready, or a decision in principle
- Understand property is a long hold, not a flip
- Want due diligence more than you want excitement
- Can move when the right one appears
Give me a miss if you
- Are researching with no timeline or budget
- Are chasing 20% yields you saw on YouTube
- Won't provide proof of funds
- Want someone to argue with about fees
I'd rather tell you on the first call than waste three weeks of yours.
Straight answers
Questions I get asked first.
Do you work for the buyer or the seller?
The buyer, only. I take no commission from sellers or estate agents, so there's nothing pulling against you when I negotiate.
Do I need to visit the property?
No. I attend every viewing in person and record a full walkthrough with honest notes, so you can buy from London or from abroad without travelling.
Where do you buy?
South Yorkshire and North Nottinghamshire, centred on Worksop and roughly 10 miles around it. That includes Sheffield, Doncaster, Rotherham, Worksop and the surrounding towns.
How do you get paid?
A fixed fee agreed before I start, paid in three stages: a small amount on instruction, more at memorandum of sale, and the majority only on completion. No commission, no hidden costs.
Tell me what you're trying to do.
Five questions, two minutes. If we're a fit I'll book a call. If we're not I'll tell you, and point you somewhere better.
Connor Blades, Founder and Director. You'll be speaking to me, not a call centre.