Reality for realty: New service offers inspections for online property shoppers
It's an experience most buyers have gone through before.
You stumble upon your dream property on a listing website. It has everything - high ceilings, water views, plush carpets and just enough room for you, the partner and the dog - and all at the right price.
But when you drive out to the suburb and walk through at the open home, something's not quite right. Those ceilings might be high to a toddler, but you almost bump your head on the chandelier. The plush carpets stink of old cigarettes and it turns out you can't get a glimpse of water unless you climb up the gum tree in the backyard. Another Saturday morning wasted.
Listing photos are there to make a property look good - good enough to get the buyers in the door at an open home, rather than scrolling past on a website. Unfortunately, that often means that they gloss over all the negatives of a property, the ones that really matter to buyers. For those traveling across the city for a new home purchase, or even interstate, this can result in a big loss of time and money, with the added opportunity cost of all those other properties you could have looked at in the mean time.
To combat rip-offs, scams and simple oversells, two Queensland entrepreneurs have launched a new business that lets consumers check out real estate, goods, accommodation and even dating prospects without ever leaving their own home.
The 'Go To Guy' network, founded by Garry Harding and Greg Rawlinson, is made of 350 inspectors across the country who can visit, document and report on properties or goods before you purchase them. An independent report, which you can compare against the original seller's description, will cost you $55.
The company also offers rental inspections for landlords who can't align their schedule with their tenants or property managers, client and asset verification for credit providers. They'll even meet prospective dates for online daters who are wary of "catfish".
According to the company's founders, they were inspired to launch the service after being disappointed by their own online purchases. Chief executive Garry Harding said the service can save buyers money and time.
“Online fraud and deception is growing as fast as e-commerce itself but our Go To Guys can now save consumers time and money by verifying the existence, condition and seller’s claims of any item so shoppers can avoid falling victim to misrepresentation,” said Harding.
“In the real estate field, we can check on the property’s actual condition and see if those water views actually exist. In the travel sector, we can visit holiday villas to see what they really look like and in the increasingly popular arena of internet dating – an emotional minefield at the best of times - we meet up with a client’s prospective partner with their consent to verify their identity and appearance and take photos for the client.”
Co-founder Greg Rawlinson said the independent, unbiased service helped consumers make decisions away from the sellers' interests.
"Essentially, we eliminate the guesswork and uncertainty of purchasing online by unearthing any problems and presenting a product as it really is, irrespective of whether the buyer has seen the item or person or not,” Rawlinson said.
“And our service is available 24/7 - just like the world of online shopping. We enable our customers to shop from anywhere and purchase anything with confidence.”
It remains to be seen whether consumers will be willing to pay $55 for a property inspection by the Go To Guys Network - especially as they'll most likely need to pay for another inspection from a building inspector further down the line if they do intend to buy the property. But for those who can't bear the thought of another Saturday morning wasted, it might just be worth it.