Ask these while the conversation is live, then ask for the evidence in writing. The answers, and the way they are answered, will tell you more than the brochure.
Do not send the whole list cold and wait for a polished reply. Ask the questions on the phone, or while the person is actively replying on WhatsApp, then ask them to confirm the answer and send the evidence in writing. A pause proves nothing. But sudden vagueness, deflection, a change in pace or reluctance to document the answer tells you where to look harder.
A pause proves nothing. But sudden vagueness, deflection, a change in pace or reluctance to document the answer tells you where to look harder.
Who pays you or any connected company on this deal, and how much in total?
Non-answer: “It’s completely free to you. The developer pays us.” That says who pays. It does not say how much.
Send me the three closest recent completed-sale comparables used to support this price, including the sale date, size and location.
Non-answer: asking prices, citywide averages, developer list prices or unnamed “comparable developments”.
Is that yield gross or net, and exactly what has been deducted?
Non-answer: “Net of management.” Net of one cost is not net.
If any rent is described as assured or guaranteed, who is contractually liable for paying it, and can I see the agreement and their latest filed accounts?
Non-answer: “It’s fully managed.” Management does not answer who owes the rent.
If the pitch relies on assured, guaranteed or lease-backed rent, what is contractually due in year three, and who decides it?
Non-answer: “The lease is 25 years.” The length of the agreement is not the amount or duration of the rent commitment.
Is that growth figure a forecast for this unit, this postcode, the city or the wider region?
Non-answer: a regional forecast, quoted accurately, attached to a property it was never written about.
Below market value against what evidence: an independent valuation or completed sales, produced when and by whom?
Non-answer: a discount measured against the developer’s own list price.
Who is the likely buyer in year five, and what have comparable units actually resold for?
Non-answer: “We can help you sell when the time comes.” That is a service promise, not an exit market.
If the lender values the property below the contract price, what does the contract require from me?
Non-answer: “That doesn’t really happen.”
Give me the whole number: purchase price, stamp duty or equivalent property tax at the rate applicable to me, legal and mortgage costs, furnishing, every fee and required reserve. Then show me the total year-one net income against all cash invested.
Non-answer: any answer that begins with the headline yield rather than the total.
See what this looks like when applied to a real deal.
A method walkthrough and a redacted live case study. Free, no email wall.
lucasjames.co.uk/case-studies →The off-plan conversion case study shows every one of these questions put to a live deal, and what came back: lucasjames.co.uk/case-studies/off-plan-conversion
For the method behind the questions: the Risk Filter and Industry Decoder, £450 · lucasjames.co.uk/framework
General information only. Not legal, tax, mortgage or financial advice. Property values and rental income can fall as well as rise.
lucasjames.co.uk/ten-questions