SMSF Trustees 2
...Getting into property investment was something we had been wanting to do for some time but didn't know where to start. Buying property in an SMSF is not a straight forward process and Miriam was able to help us navigate through the legal minefield.
After meeting with Miriam and with her assistance, we were surprised by just how simple and easy it would be to get into property investment. From our first meeting we were impressed with her professionalism and knowledge of the market. In detail she went through our needs and was very quickly able to put together an investment strategy.
Within a week of becoming her customer we received our first (of many) weekly property search reports. These reports were invaluable in picking the right investment property and more often than not, they identified pros/cons that ordinarily we would have never considered. Miriam’s comments on each of the properties and the attention to detail was paramount in our decision making process.
Once we found the ‘right’ property, Miriam began the negotiation processes with the vendor. Just to name a few, this resulted in significant savings from the advertised asking price, the addition of numerous clauses in the contract of sale to protect us and she ended up negotiating a ‘discount’ from the settlement post building and pest inspections.
Miriam’s services really are ‘end to end’. Not only did she find a property and negotiate the sale but she managed the whole process throughout. I'm sure she did far more but from memory this included arranging building & pest inspections, coordinating solicitors/vendors/accountants/lenders, ensuring the legal structure behind our SMSF was ( established), introducing property managers and generally ensuring everyone involved was working in unity.
Miriam provided constant advice and guidance throughout the whole transaction, kept us completely up to date and was always on call for any questions we had.
One item in particular has stuck in my mind and that is that she knew what the lenders would require (from a legal perspective) before they did. SMSF lending is clearly something out of the ordinary and there is no doubt in my mind that she clearly had more knowledge than what our bank manager did and through this she was able to save us in excess of $2,000.00 in bank fees!
As for value for money, 10 out of 10. Literally with the money she saved us (lower purchase price, bank fees saved and negotiated ‘discount’) she more than covered her fees. There is no question in my mind about the value she provides and we have already started discussions about using her services for another property.
Our experience with Miriam has made our dream of entering property investment a reality. She made the complicated task of buying an investment property in our SMSF a smooth experience. I could not recommend Miriam’s services more highly to anyone wanting to enter property investment and it is because of her we were able to achieve our goal. I have no doubt that if we didn't meet Miriam, we would still just be ‘thinking about it’.
Simon and Shelley Hayward
January 2015
