Free tool · The pre-offer checklist

40 checks before you make an offer.

This is the checklist we run on every property we buy for clients. Tick them off as you go; your progress saves in your browser. The expensive mistakes in property are almost never bad luck. They're a skipped check.

0 of 40 checked

The suburb

Where 80% of the result gets decided, before you ever see a house.

The street

Data cannot see a street. Your feet can.

The property

Paint is cheap. What is under it is not.

The contract

Deals are lost in clauses, not open homes.

The numbers

If the numbers only work in the brochure, they do not work.

Free download

Take it to the open home.

Put your details in and the printable version appears right here, ready to save as a PDF or shove in the glovebox. One email, no 14-part sequence after it.

I write it and email it myself, usually within a business day. Check junk, it lands there more than it should. You'll also get Market Pulse once a month; reply stop to leave. Your details never go to anyone else.

Fair questions

Before you print it.

Is this really the checklist you use for clients?
It's the shape of it, yes. The client version runs deeper on data (we screen all ~15,000 suburbs before a shortlist exists) and we do the legwork ourselves. But every item on this page is a check we genuinely run before an offer goes in. Nothing here is filler.

Do I need all 40? The property looks fine.
They all look fine. That's what presentation is for. Most of these checks cost nothing but a phone call or an hour of reading, and any single one of them can save you tens of thousands. The expensive mistakes we see are almost always a skipped check, not bad luck.

What order should I do them in?
Top to bottom. Suburb first, because no house is good enough to fix a bad market. Street and property next. Contract and numbers before you sign anything. If a property fails early, stop; the checklist is also permission to walk away.

Can't my conveyancer and building inspector cover all this?
They cover their sections, and good ones are worth every dollar. But nobody else is checking the suburb data, the supply pipeline, the rent reality or the exit. That part is on you, or on someone you hire to be you. Which, to be clear, is the job we do.

General information only, not legal, building or financial advice. A checklist prompts the questions; licensed professionals answer them. Always use your own conveyancer and your own building inspector.

Or skip the homework entirely.

Running this list properly takes a weekend per property. The area check comes first, and that one we write up for you, free.

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