The Melbourne buyers agent built
for investors who read the data first.

A Melbourne buyers agent represents you — the buyer — in every step of acquiring a property: identifying suburbs that match your strategy, sourcing on-market and off-market listings, conducting due diligence, attending inspections on your behalf, negotiating with selling agents, bidding at auction, and managing the contract through to settlement. We are the only licensed party in a typical transaction whose legal duty is to the buyer; selling agents work for the vendor and earn more if you pay more.

PremiumRea charges a flat AUD $15,800 + GST for full investment-property acquisition — fixed regardless of purchase price. Industry-wide, fees range from 1.5% to 3% of purchase price (so $12,000–$30,000 on an $800k property), or flat fees from $9,500 to $25,000+. Be cautious of agents whose fee scales with purchase price — that creates a perverse incentive to push you toward a more expensive property.

Yes. To act as a buyer's agent in Victoria you must hold either a full Estate Agent licence or a Real Estate Agent's Representative authority issued by Consumer Affairs Victoria. PremiumRea operates under licensed estate agents, carries professional indemnity insurance, and is accountable to CAV's regulatory framework. Always ask for a licence number before engaging anyone — there is no excuse for not providing it.

In Victoria the two terms are used interchangeably and there is no legal distinction — both refer to the same regulated role under the Estate Agents Act 1980. Some practitioners prefer 'advocate' to emphasise the advisory nature of the work; others use 'buyer's agent' because it is the search term most people recognise. Either way, the licence requirements, ethical obligations, and scope of work are identical.

Not strictly — but for first-home buyers the cost of getting it wrong is high, often higher than the agent fee itself. The most common first-home buyer mistakes we see are paying 5–10% above fair market value (because you didn't know what comparable sales looked like) and buying in a suburb whose growth fundamentals are already exhausted. We charge less for first-home-buyer engagements (the search is usually narrower) and the negotiation savings typically cover our fee in full on the first offer.

Yes, but only some can. SMSF purchases require Limited Recourse Borrowing Arrangement (LRBA) compliance, careful structuring around bare trusts, and a strict separation between the trustee's investment intent and any personal interest. PremiumRea has closed 40+ SMSF transactions and works with three SMSF-specialist accountants and lenders we trust. Choosing a buyer's agent without SMSF experience is the fastest way to fall foul of the in-house asset rules and trigger SIS Act penalties.

We will if we can find them — and at any moment we typically have 6 to 14 active off-market opportunities sourced from our agency network, vendor solicitors, and property managers whose owners are quietly considering selling. But honest disclosure: 'off-market' is not a magic discount. Off-market vendors are usually motivated, not desperate, and often already have a target price in mind. The benefit is reduced competition and longer due-diligence windows — not a guaranteed bargain.

Typical timeline is 6 to 14 weeks. Stage breakdown: strategy consultation and brief sign-off (week 1), shortlist development (weeks 1–3), inspections + due diligence on the leading 2–3 properties (weeks 3–5), offer negotiation or auction (weeks 4–6), contract execution and 30–60 day settlement (weeks 6–14). We never rush a client into a property to close out a quarter; if the right property hasn't appeared by week 14 we extend the engagement at no extra fee.

Three concrete differences. (1) Data: we have built our own suburb-stats and risk-overlay tools using ABS, CoreLogic, Domain, and council data — competitors typically rely on broker reports. (2) Yield focus: PremiumRea's median portfolio yield post-renovation is 5.5–8% (versus 3–4% on standard buyers-agent acquisitions) because we explicitly source for granny flat and rooming house strategies. (3) Mandarin-speaking team end-to-end — we are one of three Melbourne buyers agents able to handle a transaction in Mandarin or Cantonese from initial consultation to bank-loan settlement.

No, and any buyer's agent who says they will is misleading you. The lowest possible price is whatever a desperate vendor accepts — and there is no way to know in advance which vendors are desperate. What a buyer's agent can guarantee is fair market price (we won't let you overpay) and structural advantage (you bring a licensed negotiator, comparable-sales analysis, and pre-approved financing to the table). Our 350+ closed transactions average $30k–$80k below initial asking price, but every contract is its own negotiation.

If we cannot find a suitable property within the agreed brief and budget, we extend at no charge until we do. If you change your mind about buying altogether before any offer is signed, the engagement fee is partially refundable on a pro-rata basis (specifics in the engagement letter). We have never had a client engage us without buying — but the door stays open both ways.

Book a free 30-minute strategy call at the link below. The call is for both sides: we walk you through how we work, you tell us your investment goals, financing position, and timeline. If we agree it's a fit we send the engagement letter; if either side feels it's not a match nothing further happens. No high-pressure sales — we close 60+ transactions a year already and our throughput is set by quality, not lead volume.

Yes. About 18% of our last 12 months of closings were regional Victoria — predominantly Ballarat, Geelong, and Wyndham/Werribee corridor. Regional VIC suits investors who want lower entry price ($400k–$650k vs. metro $700k–$1.1m) with comparable yields after the granny-flat layer is added. We don't cover regional NSW or QLD — see 'What we won't do' above for the honest exclusions.

Yes. Approximately 22% of our active engagements are with buyers physically outside Australia (mainland China, Hong Kong, Singapore, UK). The full transaction can be conducted via video call, WeChat, and signed PDF — there's no in-person requirement until settlement, which can be handled by your conveyancer with a remote PEXA workflow. We coordinate with FIRB for any FIRB-applicable purchases (most overseas-resident purchases require FIRB approval). The fee is unchanged.

Three concrete shifts: (1) Off-market access matters more — auction clearance has been below 60% three of the last five quarters, vendors are increasingly trying off-market sales first to gauge interest. Buyer's agents with genuine off-market networks see 30%+ more deals than competitors who rely only on listings sites. (2) Council overlays have multiplied — 21 new overlays added across Greater Melbourne LGAs since 2023. Missing one (PAO especially) can wipe 30% of property value when the council acquires for road widening or social housing. (3) The rental yield equation has flipped — investors are now overpaying for capital growth (3-4% net yields) when granny-flat-augmented properties offer 7-9% yields with the same growth profile.

The free 30-min call is a fit assessment, not a strategy session. We listen to your situation, ask 8-10 clarifying questions, and tell you whether we think we can help. We're explicit about what we don't do (see the 'What we won't do' section) so you can decide quickly whether we're the right operator for your goal. The full engagement begins after the engagement letter is signed and the AUD $15,800 + GST fee structure starts. If we think you're better served by a different agent or a different strategy entirely (e.g., an SMSF specialist accountant before a property), we'll tell you that on the free call — sending you elsewhere costs us nothing and earns trust.

If your strategy includes a granny flat (most common), rooming house conversion, or full renovation, our construction team is briefed within 7 days of settlement and we coordinate the build through to OC (Occupancy Certificate). Property management is optional via our 4.9% + GST service — we are not a property management firm primarily, so this is offered for clients who prefer one-stop convenience over choosing among the wider PM market (Melbourne PM averages 7.7%, so we are still 30%+ cheaper). Six months and 12 months post-settlement, we contact you for a check-in: actual rent versus modelled rent, valuation, refinance options. No upsell pressure — many clients use this check-in to simply confirm everything is going to plan, then disappear into normal operations until they're ready for the next property.

Joey Don and Yan Zhu have been quoted in Domain, realestate.com.au, Smart Property Investment, and Property Update across 2024–2026, primarily on Melbourne suburb data, granny flat ROI, and SMSF property structuring. We don't aggressively pitch press — most coverage comes from journalists searching for someone with the actual portfolio data to back up a thesis, then finding our public Suburb Stats tool. The Team page lists recent coverage with links.