10 Properties We Told Our Clients NOT to Buy — And Why

Most buyer’s advocates love showing you what they bought. The sold sticker. The auction win. The keys. The happy client. We are proud of those purchases too.

But there is another side of buyer advocacy that we believe matters just as much, and sometimes matters considerably more: The properties we tell our clients NOT to buy.

At Concierge Buyers Advocates, our job isn't to find a reason to buy every property we inspect. It is to find the right property, at the right price, for the right buyer and the right purpose. And when something doesn't stack up? We tell you not to buy.

That can mean disappointing a client who loves the house. It can mean abandoning something we've already spent days investigating. And sometimes it means driving to an inspection, taking one look...

…and driving off, not even getting out of the car.

For every successful purchase, we typically screen 100–300 properties, inspect 20–50 and reject around 90%. Because good buyer advocacy isn't measured by how quickly our advocates can get you to sign a contract. Sometimes the smartest property purchase is the one you never make.

Here are ten real case studies.

1. The “Exclusive” Off-Market Property That Wasn't Worth the Price

The selling agent invited us to inspect an off-market property asking more than $1.5 million. It presented beautifully, but the surrounding sales didn't support the price. Our assessment was closer to $1.3 million, so we told the agent it's overpriced, and declined to pursue it.

Three weeks later, it appeared publicly with an auction guide around $1.0–$1.1 million. Bidding reached approximately $1.35 million, and it still passed in. The owner obviously wanted more. It was eventually withdrawn unsold.

“Off-market” can mean opportunity. But it can also mean someone is testing whether an enthusiastic buyer will overpay. It is more of the former.

Read the full story → "Off-Market Overpriced Properties"

2. The $900,000 Property That Was Really a $1.26 Million Property

A property appeared for around $900,000 in the Glen Waverley Secondary College zone. It immediately caught our attention, until our appraisal suggested buyers were likely to pay another $300,000–$400,000 above the advertised figure.

We asked whether the vendors would actually consider an offer near the quoted range. Effectively, no. Rather than let our client spend time and money on inspections, etc, and become emotionally invested, we recommended walking away. It eventually sold for approximately $1.26 million, right within our appraisal.

Read the full story → "Time Wasting Underquoted Property"

3. The Building That Disappeared From the Photographs

This property looked excellent online: bright, spacious and apparently private. Then we inspected it for an interstate buyer and discovered a neighbouring double-storey development overlooking directly into the living area.

More interestingly, that rather substantial building appeared to have been edited out of the marketing photographs in the real estate advertisement. Privacy was one concern. Trust was the bigger one. If something that obvious had disappeared from the advertising, we had to ask: what else weren't we seeing? We gave the $1.3 million property a Do Not Buy recommendation.

Read the full story → "What You See Is Not What You Get"

4. The Fence That Wasn't Really a Fence Problem

During an inspection we noticed an ageing boundary fence leaning away from the house. A subsequent building report done by a buyer-preferred inspector (cost reasons), described the fencing as generally serviceable for its age. Something about that conclusion didn't sit right with us, so we went back specifically to investigate it.

Behind the fence, adjoining council land had eroded significantly, leaving a drop of around 1.5 metres in places. This wasn't simply an old-fence-problem anymore. It potentially involved land stabilisation, retaining works, engineering and the added complexity of dealing with council-owned land. We recommended walking away.

Read the full story → "That Sinking Feeling"

5. The Holiday Home Where Nature Was Too Close for Comfort

Our client wanted something unusual: a holiday property offering both a sea change and a tree change. This one ticked most of the boxes and looked promising enough to inspect.

Five minutes after arriving, we were leaving. The property was affected by a Bushfire Management Overlay, which wasn't unexpected for the area, but the vegetation was simply too close for this particular buyer's risk tolerance. We could also see evidence of recent fire activity nearby. Beautiful property. Wrong property for our client.

Read the full story → "Holiday Home Too Close for Comfort"

6. The Old House With “Good Bones” That Didn't

Our client specifically wanted an older house with good bones. From a distance, this one looked respectable. Up close, the external brickwork began telling a different story: badly deteriorated and missing mortar, potentially associated with prolonged moisture exposure, weathering or rising damp.

Could it potentially be repaired? Of course. But our client wanted a long-term home, not an expensive investigation into what was happening behind deteriorating masonry. The right property for a renovator can still be completely wrong for somebody wanting to move in and stay.

Read the full story → "Just an Older House?"

7. The Beautiful Ensuite With a Very Expensive Clue

Most buyers would probably have considered the renovated ensuite an asset. We noticed something rather less attractive: water on the floor and calcified staining between the tiles, suggesting the leak may have been happening for some time.

The property was being marketed around $1.3–$1.45 million. We believed it was approximately $300,000 overpriced, even before allowing for potentially significant bathroom repairs. We walked away. Around two months later, the asking price dropped by a rather interesting amount: approximately $300,000.

Read the full story → "Classic Ensuite — With a Not-So-Classic Feature"

8. Melbourne's Leaning Townhouse

A slight lean might give a 12th-century Italian Pisa landmark character. In a Melbourne townhouse, we'd rather not.

Apparent movement, sticky doors, misaligned cabinetry and other observations raised questions about what might be happening beneath the cosmetic finishes. More importantly, this property formed part of a row of eight townhouses, potentially making any serious rectification considerably more complicated. Sometimes the question isn't “How much can we negotiate off?” It's “Why are we trying to buy this at all?” We walked away, and it was swiftly sold to the next buyer in the same afternoon.

Read the full story → "Leaning Townhouse of Melbourne"

9. The Outdoor Kitchen — And What Was Missing

This approximately ten-year-old three-bedroom property looked like excellent value. Then, during the inspection, we noticed an outdoor kitchen that appeared to have been added later. We actually loved the concept. The kitchen itself wasn't the problem.

The problem was what we couldn't find: satisfactory evidence of the relevant electrical and plumbing compliance documentation. When we asked for them, we were referred back to the vendor-supplied building report — which didn't answer the question. Our client liked the property, but unresolved uncertainty doesn't disappear because the house presents nicely. We recommended they not proceed.

Read the full story → "When We Found What's Missing"

10. The 700sqm Development Block That Wasn't Really 700sqm

This one looked spectacular on paper: a three-bedroom house on around 700sqm advertised for $650,000, in a suburb where houses could sell for around $1.2 million. Better still, it was a corner block with the house apparently sitting to one side — perfect for our client's proposed subdivision.

Something didn't add up. So, we drove past during lunch. We arrived, looked at the property, and kept driving. Occupying much of that apparently vacant land was a massive high-voltage transmission tower. For our client's subdivision strategy, a substantial part of the 700sqm was effectively unusable. We passed. Literally. We didn't even get out of the car.

Read the full story → "When a 700sqm Block Isn't Really 700sqm"

Why We Tell Clients Not to Buy

These ten properties were rejected for very different reasons:

Some had physical problems.

Some carried risks that didn't suit the buyer.

Some were overpriced.

One wasn't realistically available anywhere near the advertised price.

One looked rather different from its marketing photographs.

One raised questions because important documentation was missing.

And one had a transmission tower sitting where our client's subdivision was supposed to go.

But they stay true to our simple principle:

Sometimes that means:

Buy it.

Sometimes:

Buy it — but only at the right price.

Sometimes:

Investigate this before going any further.

And sometimes:

Don't buy it.

We don't regard walking away as failure. A property that doesn't suit your objectives, carries unacceptable risk or is simply too expensive doesn't suddenly become a good purchase because you've already spent three weekends looking at it.

Buying Propertiers is Most Dangerous When You Start Falling in Love

Property buying becomes particularly dangerous once emotion overtakes investigation.

You've visited twice.

You've imagined your furniture inside.

You've mentally renovated the kitchen.

You've worked out where the television goes.

The children have already chosen bedrooms.

You've started checking how long it takes to drive to work.

Then suddenly the sales agent told you somebody else is interested, and walking away feels like losing something. Except you don't own it.

This is when the sales agent suddenly felt so "understanding" and "reassuring", and buyers start explaining problems and trying to justify why problems aren't problems, instead of investigating them.

That crack?

“Probably nothing.”

That price?

“Someone else might pay it.”

The missing paperwork?

“We'll sort that out later.”

The badly leaning townhouse?

“Well, maybe they all lean.”

Sales agents are trained to tap into your emotions and manipulate you into buying. It is a known fact that sales-agent-turned-buyer-agent still tap into this "skill" to meet their transaction KPIs, when they have to.

This is precisely when you must have the discipline to be neutral and remove any emotional connections. Something which most buyers cannot do. That's when you need an independent buyer's advocate.

Being third party in the purchase decision, it is easier for genuine independent buyers advocates to stay independent, and to remain detached. The property doesn't care how emotionally invested you have become. And neither does the repair bill.

A Buyer's Advocate Shouldn't Just Find Reasons to Buy

Finding reasons to buy is the sales agents job. Selling agents are employed by the seller. Their job is to sell the property, and to tell you why you should buy the house they're selling.

Buyers advocates role sit on the opposite side of the transaction.

When we represent the purchaser, we ask different questions:

What is this property actually worth?

What isn't the advertising showing us?

What could hurt its future resale value?

Does the physical condition concern us?

Does the location genuinely suit the strategy?

What are we assuming, and what happens if those assumptions are wrong?

Are there better properties available for the same money?

And perhaps the most important question:

If the answer is no, we keep looking.

Not Every Problem Means “Do Not Buy”

This is an important distinction. Finding something wrong with a property doesn't automatically make it a bad purchase. While it might be right for one buyer, it could fit other buyers like a glove.

A house with $100,000 of problems might be terrible value at $1.4 million, but an outstanding opportunity at $950,000.

A weatherboard requiring restumping could be a completely wrong choice for a first home buyer wanting something move-in ready, but ideal for an experienced renovator, or someone after knock-down-rebuild property. At the right price of course.

A property surrounded by bush might exceed one family's risk tolerance while being exactly what another buyer wants.

An ugly house on exceptional land could be a poor home and a fantastic development site.

The question isn't simply:

“Is something wrong with this property?”

It is:

Those are a very different question.

Property Due Diligence Is More Than a Building Inspection

A building and pest inspection can be extremely important. So can legal advice. But neither replaces the broader assessment of the property as an asset, in that location for our client's goals.

A building inspector isn't necessarily there to tell you you're paying $300,000 too much.

Your conveyancer isn't standing in the living room assessing whether the neighbouring development has destroyed the property's privacy.

An online valuation app doesn't know that the advertised 700sqm development opportunity has a transmission tower sitting in the middle of the supposedly usable land.

And a beautifully presented listing won't necessarily tell you why a fence is leaning.

Good property due diligence puts those answers together. For a Melbourne property purchase, that can include analysing:

- Comparable sales and fair market value

- Street and neighbourhood quality

- Land size, shape and usability

- Planning controls and overlays

- Easements and title restrictions

- Building condition

- Structural movement

- Renovations and additions

- Electrical and plumbing documentation

- Owners corporation matters

- Neighbouring properties and development

- Bushfire and flooding considerations

- Future resale appeal

- Rental and investment fundamentals

- Whether the property genuinely suits the buyer's strategy

Because buying the wrong property cheaply doesn't necessarily make it a good deal. Sometimes it just makes it a cheaper mistake.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why would a buyer's advocate tell a client not to buy?

Because buyer advocacy should be about finding the right property rather than simply completing a transaction. We may recommend walking away because of price, physical condition, location, planning issues, resale concerns, unacceptable risk or because the property simply doesn't suit the client's objectives.

Does a building defect automatically mean a property should be rejected?

No. The seriousness of the defect needs to be considered against the purchase price, likely repair costs, the buyer's objectives and their appetite for risk. The same property can be unsuitable for one buyer and an excellent opportunity for another.

Can problems be identified before paying for a formal building inspection?

Sometimes. An experienced property assessment may uncover warning signs that justify further investigation — or make the property unsuitable before additional money is spent. However, a buyer's advocate inspection does not replace an appropriate building, pest, engineering, legal or other specialist assessment where one is required.

Why is an independent property appraisal important?

Because the advertised price is part of the selling campaign. It is not independent advice about what the property is worth to you. Comparable sales, location, condition, land, current market conditions and buyer demand should all be considered before deciding what to pay.

What is one of the biggest mistakes property buyers make?

Deciding they want to buy the property before finishing the investigation.

Once buyers become emotionally committed, warning signs can quickly become things to rationalise rather than things to investigate.

The Property You Don't Buy Can Save You More Than the One You Do

We love finding exceptional properties for our clients and we love negotiating them well. And, yes, handing over the keys is considerably more exciting than saying, “Next.”

But successful buyer advocacy isn't measured by how many contracts we convince our clients to sign. For the buyers agents at Concierge Buyers Advocates, it is measured by the quality of the decisions we help them make.

Sometimes our value comes from finding the property nobody else noticed.

Sometimes it comes from negotiating tens or hundreds of thousands from the asking price.

Sometimes it comes from paying a bit more than the next buyer.

Sometimes it comes from spotting the problem everybody else walked past.

And sometimes our most valuable advice consists of three words:

Then we go and find something better. Because there will always be another property. But there isn't always an easy way to undo a bad one.