Property insights from Investec Private Banking

Saying goodbye to a paycheck. It’s a moment every business founder goes through. Yes, they might take a token salary, but their personal worth is tied up in their company. They succeed when their business succeeds. A client of ours co-founded and runs a watch company. He’s also looking for a new home for his family in a fast-changing housing market. While some home buyers are feeling skittish, our client sees an opening. He’s found the right property at the right price, but he needs to move quickly. Opportunity doesn’t linger. There’s one snag. His current home’s on the market, but it won’t sell in time to finance the new purchase. He comes to Investec Private Bank.

Securing the property isn’t going to be easy. It takes a bridging loan charged over the existing home and two other properties. To justify the loan size, we looked beyond salary, at our client’s share in the business, its estimated value and recent performance. This was certainly no ordinary lending deal. But entrepreneurs are no ordinary homeowners. For my client, the sale is completed within a few weeks. This is one opportunity that didn’t get away. You could say it ran like clockwork.

A client of mine works in property, his wife’s an entrepreneur. They’re young, ambitious and they want to buy a family home south of London.   They find their ideal property. But there’s another interested party and the seller has just one rule: the house will go to whoever can exchange contracts first.   The other buyer has been working on this for months. Pretty ordinary for a mortgage. For my client to catch up he’s going to need more than ‘ordinary’.   It’s the evening of Tuesday the 26th of February, and he gets in touch with Investec. If he wants the house, he’s got just seven days. And he wants this house.  

Wednesday morning, 9am. Our work really starts. The client’s prepped already – he’s not letting a missing document stop him. Now it’s down to us. The loan’s approved by credit on Friday afternoon, the property is valued over the weekend. 72 hours left. On Wednesday, the legals are finalised. The offer’s in and contracts are exchanged on the spot. Just 20 minutes separate my client from the other buyer. Success and failure, separated by the time it takes to finish a coffee.

What strikes me about international clients is they don’t let borders stop them. They have a nose for a deal and if that means getting out their passport, then so be it. One client of mine works in property. While his portfolio is mostly overseas, he has his eye on entering the London market. It’s a tempting opportunity: a new city, ripe for investing. Now, my client doesn’t do things by halves. He’s done the research
and he knows where he wants to invest. The pieces are falling into place. Then, his UK bank closes. It’s a spanner in the works for his investment plans. He comes to us.

The client has big plans for his portfolio, he knows what’s
worked for him in the past and what he’s after in the UK market. Our role is simple; help him turn those plans into results. 12 deals later and we’re just getting started. Those first few have been a success, but no one’s resting on their laurels. On to the next one.
These days, borders don’t hold our clients back. Banks shouldn’t either.