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How to Choose the Right Real Estate Consultant

What is a Real Estate Consultant? 

A real estate consultant provides expert advice on selling or purchasing a property. The purpose of having a consultant on board is to help you make intelligent decisions to produce a high return on investment. Credible real estate consultants are certified by official regulators to carry out their operations.

The consultants are the brains behind every real estate operation. They plan the whole real estate project from start to finish. 

It includes the feasibility of site locations, offered facilities, construction costs, final outlook, property listing, marketing campaigns, and final transactions. That is why onboarding a real estate consultant is critical before starting any commercial or residential project.

What are the Benefits of hiring a Real Estate Consultant?

A real estate consultant helps you make successful real estate transactions. Real estate is one field that is constantly adopting the newest trends. The things that appear to be the best practices will become obsolete in the next 12-15 months. When you judge this against the fact that a typical real estate deal takes 5-10 years, it becomes self-evident that you require an expert to guide you.

These are the benefits that a real estate consultants can provide:

  1. It  helps you make suitable investments.
  2. It gives the complete financial feasibility of a project.
  3. It predicts the future forecasts of an investment.
  4. It calculates rental incomes, cash flows, and net returns.
  5. It can decide about the right location and offer facilities
  6. It helps in final negotiations to close the deal.
  7. It helps prepare legal documents, insurance agreements, and taxation files.

At the moment, UAE has become the epicenter of the world’s real estate sector. The Emirati defied global market trends by showing tremendous growth in 2022. The region is poised to deliver a cumulative growth of more than 8% during 2022-2027. These facts suggest that investors can make a great fortune by collaborating with a credible consultancy firm.

How to Choose the Right Real Estate Consultant?

When it comes to choosing a real estate consultant or real estate property management services, there are numerous options available in the market. However, to select the right one, you should put in place selection criteria. Since it is a high-risk, high-reward field, you want to avoid basing your financial decisions on newbies.

A consultant should be selected as per the following: 

1. Identify your needs and goals

Before hunting for a consultant, you should clear your vision first. You should know whether you want to work on a residential or commercial project, how much you can invest, and how long you are willing to wait for returns. Once you answer these questions, you can find a good agent aligning with your requirements. 

2. Research potential consultants

After setting out the vision, you should look for available options. There are multiple ways to do it; You can search online, get referrals from your circle, seek help from the national association of realtors, or physically visit the local market consulting firms. You should shortlist 4-5 potential candidates for further evaluation.

3. Check references and credentials

In real estate, you should always avoid trying newcomers. Any misadventure can lead to a financial disaster. Therefore, ask the consultants about their previous projects and track records. The number of successful projects and, more specifically, the projects in your area are essential here.

4. Consider experience, expertise, and skills

After seeing their experience, you should ask for their credentials. For a reputable consultancy firm, it is essential to have RICS, CIOB, IVSC, and ISO Certifications. They tell a lot about the approach of a credible consultancy firm. 

5. Evaluate communication style and personality fit

After assessing the credentials, you should determine the compatibility of both sides. You should see whether you are comfortable sharing your ideas and getting their input. Most people ignore it, but a consultant and client must work like a team for a project to succeed. Because a consultant isn’t a broker or real estate agent seeking his commission, he is more like an employee getting a fixed pay from you.

Take Away

Real estate consultants provide professional advice about buying or selling a property. The advice is based on rigorous research and analysis based on a client’s ambitions and the ground realities of the market.

 A consultant estimates capital and construction costs, cash flows, insurance, taxes, passive income streams, and net return from an investment.

This blog presents how you can choose the right real estate consultant. We have put forward 5-point selection criteria, based upon which you can judge a real estate consultant.  If you are an Emirati, click here to schedule the consultation with Land sterling—a licensed real estate consultancy firm with experience in more than 10,000 projects across the region.

FAQs

A real estate consultancy firm is a licensed organization that provides real estate consultancy. Firms include many consultants, each specializing in a particular area.

The avg consultancy salary in UAE is 7,500 AED/Month. However, this figure is flexible. A consultant can earn more depending upon his position, experience, and clientage.

There aren’t any specific requirements to be a consultant. The only thing you require is strong analytical skills. Since a consultant has to calculate all costs and then compare them against future projects, it is essential to develop an analytical mindset.

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Vinodh Mahadevan MRICS

Author

Vinodh Mahadevan MRICS

Vinodh Mahadevan is the Head of Business & Strategy at Land sterling and a Member of MRICS. With over 14 years of experience in investment advisory, consulting, valuation & advisory services, he has gained extensive exposure to valuation engagements. Vinodh's expertise includes due diligence exercises, appraisals of commercial and residential properties, mortgage and collateral appraisals, retail malls, large-scale industrial parks, hospitality and entertainment projects, and other special use real estate valuations.

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