The Finance Bible

#98 First-Time Home Buyer Secrets with Emily Wallace

• Zeke Guenthroth and Oscar Don

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Dive into the world of home ownership in this episode, where we sit down with Emily Wallace, a leading buyer's advocate, to uncover the ins and outs of buying your first home. From understanding financial prerequisites to assembling your vital team of real estate professionals, she shares invaluable advice that will prepare you for the journey ahead. Emily highlights the realities first-time buyers face, including the major barriers to entry like saving for deposits amidst soaring property prices.

With her wealth of experience, Emily provides firsthand insight on how to navigate the often overwhelming house-hunting process and dispels myths surrounding mortgage brokers and real estate agents. She emphasizes putting together a support network that can help inform pivotal decisions, guiding you through the plethora of legal and procedural requirements that can bog down the unprepared buyer.

The discussion touches upon the importance of conducting thorough inspections and the critical knowledge gaps many first-time buyers have. With actionable tips on budgeting, Emily stresses the core principle of taking quick action in your property journey. This episode not only prepares you to avoid common pitfalls but also inspires confidence in your buying process. Join us for an engaging conversation that empowers you to make informed decisions that bring you closer to homeownership. Don't forget to subscribe and share this episode with someone looking to step into the world of owning their first home!

DISCLAIMER:

The information in this podcast is general in nature and does not constitute personal financial advice. It does not take into account your individual objectives, financial situation, or needs. Always consider whether the information is appropriate for you and seek advice from a qualified professional before making financial decisions.

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Speaker 1:

Welcome back to another episode of the Finance Bible Podcast.

Speaker 2:

Zeke here and your co-host Oscar. But before we get into it, please note that nothing in this podcast should ever be considered as personal financial advice, Of course, if that is what you are seeking reach out.

Speaker 1:

We'll get you in touch with the correct professionals get the job done properly.

Speaker 2:

Sit back, relax and enjoy the show.

Speaker 1:

Let's get into it. And welcome back to another episode of the Finance Model Podcast. Today we're joined with Emily Wallace, Oscar Don, as usual, and we're going to be talking about something a little bit different today, more in terms of first home buyers, how to get into it, what to look out for and that kind of thing. Emily, welcome to the show.

Speaker 3:

Thanks, thanks for having me. I'm really excited to talk about this topic.

Speaker 1:

No problem, Oscar, let's just jump straight into it and start shooting some questions. Get a bit of expertise flowing. Take the stage.

Speaker 2:

So, emily, a few of our listeners have an idea of yourself with your Instagram page and your podcast and everything like that, so you're fairly popular in the actual property industry. But for those who don't know much about you, do you just want to give like a 30-second explanation of who you are and what you do?

Speaker 3:

Yeah for sure. So my name is Emily Wallace. I'm a buyer's advocate based in Melbourne and basically I only work on the buying side of real estate. So I help first and family home buyers to secure their next home. We don't do any investment purchases, just strictly home buying and home ownership, and we do that through having really good agent connections to make sure our clients are getting great access to properties but also being advised as to the maximum price to pay for the property as well, so they're not overpaying in any situation.

Speaker 1:

Understood, and how did you sort of first decide to go into that kind of industry?

Speaker 3:

It's a great question.

Speaker 3:

A lot of people will say they fell into real estate and I don't know if I actually fell into it.

Speaker 3:

I did want to get into it because it was more of a deliberate decision rather than just getting a job somewhere and going with it. I actually didn't know what a buyer's advocate or a buyer's agent was until I went through my own purchase and I did that myself and I really enjoyed the process and then I started to upskill and learn more about what a BA, the role of a BA and how it was a growing industry and the biggest thing I noticed was so many were investment focused and so many were for really big purchases as well, but there was no one really owning the space of that sort of under two mil entry-level purchases, particularly under a mil as well in Melbourne and educating buyers on how to buy. So with an education background my background's actually in primary school teaching I've really tried to give you know resources and help people, especially online, not just our clients to buy better, and that's sort of where my passion lies is property marrying, teaching really.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, that makes perfect sense. You spot on that huge gap in the market in terms of buyers, agents and sort of always focusing on investing, and then you get people who are like you know what about the people trying to get into their homes? What sort of problems do they encounter? And I've just recently helped a client do the exact same thing and the amount of problems they run into. Like they're not as well-versed in terms of they haven't already got a home and so they're not familiar with the whole buying process. They don't know what parties are involved. Do you want to talk a little bit about, like, what's actually involved in the process and who you need to have in your corner to sort of help with that kind of thing?

Speaker 3:

Yeah, absolutely, and there's a lot of you know names and acronyms and terms that are thrown around that first-time buyers just don't understand. The most common one which I even got confused myself when I bought my first home was conveyancer and surveyor. Those two things just sound the same. They're not the same. But starting at the start with your finance, so definitely getting a mortgage broker on board and assessing your financial requirements and putting it to a bank and getting a pre-approval is like the number one person in the first stop. In my opinion, if you have something that's a bit more complex, maybe an accountant needs to be involved. If you're a business owner trying to get finance for a home as well. But generally speaking, mortgage broker first. Then really the people you're going to be encountering on this journey.

Speaker 3:

You're going to see a lot of real estate agents. If you're going it alone, without a buyer's advocate, and you are buying solo as a first-home buyer, you're going to be interacting with real estate agents. They hold the keys to all the properties. They let you through the door. Just remember. They work for the vendor, they don't work for the buyer. So really keep that in mind. So you'll come across them at Opens and the properties, naturally.

Speaker 3:

And then your other key players in your A-team would be your conveyancer or solicitor, so they review the paperwork you're going to sign to enter into the contract of buying your property, and then your building and pest inspector, should you choose to use one so to assess the property from a structural point of view. Is it sound? Is it something you should be buying? Doing your due diligence in that way, they're the key sort of stakeholders in the journey. Um, I mentioned, you know, conveyance, a surveyor. Surveyors aren't really used unless it's land like they. They measure out and make sure a title matches what it says it's going to be, but I wouldn't say they're commonly used in purchases that I've made.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, absolutely Existing property is no real need for a surveyor.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, correct. At the moment, like obviously, interest rates have just dropped down. Obviously, in Melbourne, where you're based out of, prices are still. You know it's quite expensive to get a house in Melbourne for your first home buyer. I guess for first home buyers what's the number one hurdle you're seeing them face? Is it just education in general, or is it more of like you know their deposit levels? What are you finding when you speak to individuals coming to you for the first time?

Speaker 3:

Yeah, look, I think that the biggest hurdle is saving for the deposit. Like if so many people say to me, like I've got serviceability, you know, I pay my partner and I pay $800 a week in rent. We can cover the mortgage repayments, we're fine with that, but we can't be renting and saving for the deposit at the same time. It just doesn't work. And so a lot of people. The biggest hurdle is that those cash funds available to get in.

Speaker 3:

Now, obviously different states have different schemes to lower the deposit, but there are qualifying criteria for that. And then obviously you know exemptions of lenders mortgage insurance for certain professions that can go with a 10% deposit, but even still, there's still a large majority who will either need a 20% deposit or a 10% deposit and have to pay lenders mortgage insurance, and that is the biggest barrier to getting into the property market. Not to mention, on top of that, you've got to account for your stamp duty and I'm very, very passionate about the stamp duty being changed. The thresholds, I know, do not reflect first-time buyer territory anymore. I know on your show previously you had John Pigeon, who I co-host with on another podcast and we were chatting about this recently. Being like this is ridiculous. We both got very passionate about the stamp duty thresholds, but that is a huge barrier. I'm sure you see it as well. It's a massive barrier to buy property.

Speaker 3:

Oh yeah, because you've got to. They're a bit greedy those governments?

Speaker 2:

They are. They are indeed. Well, yeah, that makes complete sense and I guess for anyone listening who's wanting to buy a first home, what are your main tips? Tips of the trade when you speak to someone, even you know they may not have a deposit ready. You tips of the trade when you speak to someone, even you know they may not have a deposit ready, you know, maybe they're aiming for it in six months' time. What would you say? Like the necessity of what they've got to do?

Speaker 3:

the main things Look, I think the biggest thing is to understand yes, you have borrowing capacity, but you're also an effector in your repayments. A lot of people focus on, like, the purchase price or the actual loan amount, but it's like what does that translate to monthly, fortnightly, weekly for you in terms of outgoings and how does it impact your lifestyle? You don't want to be tied to a mortgage and feel like you have to spend every day in your home because you're paying so much for it and you can't have a holiday and you can't, you know, enjoy your life. So I think, as a starting point, like really assessing what is affordable, despite what the banks tell me I can borrow, what am I comfortable with? And then I think it's knowing that figure and working out okay, what does that look like in the areas that I want to buy in? Am I being realistic in wanting to buy a house or am I more of a townhouse buyer?

Speaker 3:

Doing research on sold data goes a long way, making sure that you're aware of what properties have sold for, so that when you're ready to enter the market and maybe you're a listener just thinking about, I want to buy a house, you know, maybe this year. Start your research, start monitoring properties what were they listed for versus what they sold for or what you thought they were going to sell for? And you can never do too much education on getting to know the market, because that's what professionals do, you know. We have years upon years of data, knowing what something is worth as a first-time buyer entering the market. To bring yourself up to speed, create a little spreadsheet track listing price, sold price, your prediction, and try and get the gap between your prediction and the actual sold price as small as possible, so that will show how much knowledge you have in the market.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, and even just going into open homes in the area that you're looking at, having a look around, getting to know the agents and just seeing what it's actually like inside the different discussions going on, and get a bit of insider knowledge in terms of that as well, would help a lot.

Speaker 3:

Absolutely, it's all exposure right and being known to the agents in the area that you want to buy in, like building those relationships, is integral in making sure that you have a smooth process as a buyer as well.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, big time.

Speaker 1:

We've got a lot of listeners actually that are sort of at that point in time where they've got a good job, they're out of uni or they're out of their trade, whatever it was that they decided to do and they're now at the point where they've got maybe $45,000, $50,000 saved up or within that range, give or take $10,000. Good income. So the servicing is there in terms of what they can actually borrow, but the deposit level still isn't quite there. What sort of things can they do to try to boost that, or is it something that they should be thinking about earlier? Yeah, what's your opinion on that?

Speaker 3:

I think it's making the sacrifice in the meantime.

Speaker 3:

So there's quite a few people I've spoken to that have gone and moved back in with mum and dad for a year.

Speaker 3:

If they have the luxury of doing so and thrown everything into savings Like it's just as much as we can, we're not paying exorbitant amount for rent to be, you know, right near the city Like we're actually sucking it up. Like we're actually sucking it up. We are living back with mum and dad or mum or dad or a family member of some sort at a reduced rent and that you know has been able to, has helped people to be able to boost their savings. There might be a case where you do go into a share house for a period of time, you know, and you are paying, you know, under 200 bucks a week for a room to just, you know, boost that savings account. Some people have taken on additional jobs, you know, like a weekend job, for some extra income. I think trying to maximize your income and then maximize your savings rate is a real art, but it really does require sacrifice of short-term pain for long-term gain.

Speaker 3:

I just don't know that if people are really into following what society says they should do and follow Instagram and TikTok of everyone living their best life- it can be really hard to go. Well, I'm not at that stage, but actually you're probably better off sacrificing while you're young to then springboard you into wealth as you grow older.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, completely.

Speaker 3:

Absolutely. I believe in that.

Speaker 2:

And it comes down to as what's important to yourself. Like other people want to get ahead earlier in their 20s or early 30s, while others don't really care. But you know, zeke and I are of the opinion that the earlier the better. So for yourself, like, why do you think purchasing a first home or investing in your first home is so important earlier in your life?

Speaker 3:

Yeah, I mean, even from my own personal experience right, put the buyer's advocate hat off for a second and just as a person, I bought my first property at 23 as an investment property and got into the property market and have subsequently bought further properties. I would not have been able to do that if I didn't get in when I did bought further properties. I would not have been able to do that if I didn't get in when I did. And so I think getting in is really important, but getting in with the right asset type Whether you do decide to rent, vest and your first property is an investment, or you are buying your first home knowing that it's something that can springboard you into something bigger, it might be, you know, the case of worst house on best street and you are undergoing a renovation or upgrade over time.

Speaker 3:

It might be that you're getting a unit in a blue chip area rather than a house much further out, because we know location helps property grow in price. I think it's really strict. You have to be very strategic with your first purchase, but I do think the focus of getting in, building up that equity to be able to springboard you into the next thing, is really important. But I also on the flip side, you know, sort of in the same breath, say you do have to live your life. You know there is a balance. Some people go a bit too hardcore, but you know they have big goals and they know what they have to do to get there.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, yeah, we all know one of them, the ones that won't even have a single beer on a Friday night. Yeah, but yeah, no, you're exactly right. Like whether it is an investment property or a home, because I did the same as you I bought an investment property early mornings and then from there, we all know where we are now. But in terms of trying to figure out what you want to do, I've seen it work in many different ways. You'd be the same, oscar's the same. Some people will go for a home because their lifestyle needs that first, and then they'll kind of build that, get some equity, start paying it off, while they then leverage into an investment and then, if you do it the other way, you do it the other way. It's just depending on your lifestyle. Yeah, it all works. It's just a matter of getting in, as you say.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, and risk appetite as well. You know, it depends how much you want to put in. Are you putting all your?

Speaker 3:

eggs in one basket, like are you willing to be high risk while you have no dependents? And it's just you know, you with a good income, or maybe you and a partner with a great income. So yeah, I think things become more challenging when you do have dependents, when you have school zones, when you have, you know, a lot more expenses as you do potentially grow a family. So the benefit of doing it while you're young is you've got a lot less at stake, I guess when you do go to invest.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, and the hardest bit is saving for that deposit. Because once you've saved for that initial deposit, ideally, if you do it correctly, the next deposit will come from the equity in the properties. So just getting that first savings we tell you know, we talk about in our podcast quite frequently that's the hardest bit. But once that's done and you speak with a professional and you got into a good property, it's generally pretty smooth sailing from there.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, indeed, it's so it's. Yeah, it's just that getting in it makes it. Yeah, once you're in, you're set, but it's just getting to that milestone.

Speaker 1:

You brought up a really good point earlier about beauty and pest inspections and professionals to have in your corner. A lot of people that I've met don't fully understand the point of them and they're trying to save $1,000 or $800 on a property report because they don't understand what can go wrong. I just want to get your opinion on it because we've had many, many clients who even just an example with Oscar recently buying a property we knew there was some form of termite damage. We just didn't know how much to pay for hefty inspections and whatnot Negotiated the price down like 50, 60 grand and ended up winning out of it. But there's so many little things that can go wrong or that you just don't know about, even whether it's like the roofing sheets or the ceiling starting to sag or something. In your experience, are you pretty much trying to get everyone to commit to doing a building and pest inspection?

Speaker 3:

Yeah, it's a great question, and unless you are a building and pest inspector yourself, you couldn't possibly know what goes on. And even to me it's not sufficient to be like, oh, my dad's a builder, so you know, I'll get him to have his eyes over it. It's like that's not.

Speaker 1:

And also it doesn't stand up.

Speaker 3:

It does Like dad, uncle, someone that you know. I think the issue with that is like in order to withdraw from a contract it needs to be a proper report by a registered builder and it has to have major defect listed on that report, so you can't actually rely on just a family member going through. We had one just two weeks ago. The client actually decided to do the building and pest before placing an offer even though you can usually place an offer and then get it done because they thought that if they found a couple of things it might reduce how much they want to offer on the property.

Speaker 3:

Was kind of the gut feel of it anyway, there were some things that we were expecting, like wear and tear, but we weren't expecting to find rising damp in the property, all around the perimeter of the property and basically like it was an extremely difficult fix, potentially actually not fixable. It was beyond sort of taking it on and so I couldn't have known that. Because I'm not a building person inspector, they definitely didn't know that and, yes, it would have flagged as a major structural defect if we went through with the contract. But to even just avoid getting into a contract at all, you know, sometimes is beneficial. So I think people underestimate the value of them. Some people are like, oh, they're too surface level and you know like I don't think they can really deep dive enough for me to know. But it's more about collating a list of things that you need to look into further and clarifying items that come up on it. I would say like, so it's at our client's discretion if they want to get one or not. We have contacts, you know, to get them done.

Speaker 3:

I advise them in certain situations like we really need to get one on this, like I can just tell there's potentially something wrong with it. But I would say it's probably 70%, get it done and 30%, particularly they've been through the ringer with a couple of, you know, different properties. Are like ah, I've seen it all before, it'll be fine. And like, okay, well, that's your, that's your choice, you know but if it were me buying, I'd get one.

Speaker 3:

It's just like a road worthy for a car like you just wouldn't buy a car that knowing that it goes fine by. You know someone who's certified to say that that is the case. So yeah, I definitely um would highly encourage people to consider them for sure yeah, yeah, and state by state it will vary as well.

Speaker 1:

There's a contract law in every state for listeners out there, so you know in.

Speaker 1:

WA you really need that major structural defect, whereas in Queensland you might not need that. You can just have subject to building and pest 14 days and then you know you can pretty much pull out of anything based on that. So know your state as well, and that's when the other partner you brought up, the conveyancer or solicitor, um yes, comes in and you need to work with them and understand what offer you're putting forward, what your rights are, what you can and can't do, um. And then ultimately, if there is a negotiation or the subject finance or subject to building a pest, you can get it done.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, absolutely yeah. It's certainly a pretty integral part of the process of making sure you have the right people on board is very important.

Speaker 1:

Is there anything out there that you've run into in doing this that you just never, ever would have expected to be like a problem, or, I think, just something that's completely shocked you, that you know people might take value out of?

Speaker 3:

Nothing to shock. Oh, actually, yes, there was one. There is one that I recall from the notion of building and pest right. Pre-auction we looked at this property and it had a brand new renovation, probably like six months old. This reno looked amazing, very popular area, very popular property, and my building and pest inspector went through and he basically said the entire bathroom needs to be ripped out, the waterproofing has failed and the stumps under the house are actually wet because the water has gone that's gone through the subfloor into the stumps under the house are actually wet because the water has gone that's gone through the subfloor into the stumps and the soil at the base of the stumps is wet. I have never seen anything like it.

Speaker 3:

And my heart sank when I saw the property sell. It was a very competitive auction. We obviously weren't in it at all Like we were like nah, we're out. Yeah, I saw it sell to a young couple and I was like you guys have no idea, like you've just spent. They spent well over the quote, right, I think we're like 100k over what it was quoted as competitive auction. Three bidders, young, first time by a couple buy it. And I'm like you clearly didn't get it done and you know you're gonna have severe mold issues and need to rip up that bathroom and that's not a cheap thing to do.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, that's a bit of money.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, so definitely. Just because something's renovated or recently done doesn't mean that that qualifies it as oh, it'll be fine, no, get it checked. Absolutely get it checked.

Speaker 2:

And that's why it's so important having a dream team in your corner. Like, for example, you know if they go to Wallace Advocates you Like, for example, you know if they go to Wallace.

Speaker 2:

Advocates, you'd be able to guide them in the direction of the licensed building pest inspectors. Just to you know, just to give them an ease of mind. For example, now when you're looking at properties, what's the like? Do you have is it more established dwellings? Do you do house and land packages Like what's the main? Like do you have, is it more established dwellings? Do you do house and land packages Like what's the main? Is it just established?

Speaker 3:

And if so, why do you think established is the way to go? Yeah, it is just established. We have helped people by. Technically they're off the plan because it's the first time it's been sold but at completion stage. So we've never entered into a contract where the building hasn't commenced or is like more than three months off being finished and titled, and so we don't do house and land as in like Greenfield Estates purchases. We just don't. We're in Metro Melbourne so we just don't even go out that far. But, like you know, newer style townhouses or apartments in newer complexes we have bought but we have been able to walk through. Maybe all that's missing is like the appliances going in or something like that.

Speaker 3:

The reason we go with established is the areas that we buy and typically have established dwellings, so there's not that much construction going on because the land's so expensive. But also you know what you're getting and you've got track record of that property. You can see, you know what you would expect with it in a new build as a bit of unknown. But also a lot of these newer builds are given to investment groups to sell to potentially overseas investors, and so you end up with a block full of rentals or airbnbs, and it can be a really disruptive living environment to be part of. So that's probably one of the it's not so much the build, it's actually the, the nature of the block that I would be, you know, potentially avoiding yeah, that makes sense.

Speaker 1:

and also, on a completely different note, in terms of dealing with agents, how do you because some agents are really good at their job, some are very gung-ho, some are really trying to push a sale because they work for the vendor and not the buyer how do you handle that? And what advice do you have for people that are kind of out there their first time. They might not be using a buyer's agent and they've got a I don't real estate agent trying to push a sale that might not necessarily be in their best interest?

Speaker 3:

Yeah, I always say to people if you're not paying, you're not the client. So the agent's paid out of the sale proceeds from a property by the vendor. You know the vendor pays them. So I'd be very skeptical of anybody who you're not paying for advice or you're not engaging for a service. Nothing in this world is free. So when you're dealing with agents and we do deal with a very big array of agents, given we buy a lot of quality property in certain areas we do see the same agents over and over again and if they've been longstanding in the industry they're typically good operators. Like bad operators really don't last very long anymore.

Speaker 3:

But if you're a buyer going it alone, I wouldn't take the agent's word as gospel. I'm not saying that they're lying, but what I would say is they're probably not telling the whole truth. They're not going to tell you all the bad things about the property, because that won't help the property to sell and they're not working in your best interest. So do your own research, do your own due diligence, particularly around comparable sales of the property in question, and make sure you understand your values. But getting the contract reviewed, getting the building and pest inspection done, speaking to the neighbours. If you can, that would be a really good one. Speaking to some neighbours who might be in the street or in the block that you're looking to buy in. But dealing with agents, it's a tricky one. I do feel really sorry for buyers going alone, because the relationship with a buyer's advocate to an agent's very different to the general public to an agent. Um, we get a much better level of service because we're repeat.

Speaker 2:

You know clients quote, unquote, um, but yeah, be very cautious is what I would say that's a good word another um another off-topic question like we're putting property aside for a little bit talking about, like, personal branding, because obviously in today's day and age, personal branding is becoming more and more popular. Like for yourself, I believe you've got around 13,000 followers on Instagram and 23,000 on TikTok. Like from your point of view, why is personal branding so important, like in today's day and age?

Speaker 3:

Yeah, it's become a real thing. Hey, like I think there is still place for company brand and I do, like I follow TikTok accounts that do have company brands mainly e-commerce brands where it's like behind the scenes of the company. But look personal brand, particularly in an industry like real estate or finance and broking and even law. I've actually noticed a couple of lawyers doing some great personal branding recently. It positions you as an expert and the opportunities that come to you when you are seen to be an expert by sharing information and insights really can help leverage your career and I think for young people listening to this, you know if you are in an industry and you want to stand out, I think focusing on your personal brand and what you bring to the table is really important, whether you have aspirations to be a business owner or not. Like there are.

Speaker 3:

I'm not sure if you heard the term of intrapreneur, but basically it's an entrepreneur within a business and you know they are a thought leader within that space. Documenting you know day in the life, documenting common questions that you get asked what's the insight of what you do and what makes you good at it. I think can be a great way to build personal brand and then the opportunities come quite quickly. It's amazing media really use tiktok and instagram to scout stories now. So being approached by the media is not uncommon now for me. Um, because it's a relevant story or a relevant topic and they're like oh, I saw your tiktok about that, can we discuss that more? What a great way for people to get exposure, you know um by free content yeah, yeah, seriously free content.

Speaker 2:

And then all of a sudden you've got first home buyers replying to you, hitting you up, and then you're helping them get into a property.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, exactly, it's definitely helped the business grow. Most of our business does come from TikTok now, but I've never really once said, hey, come and work with us. This is what we can do to help you. I've actually just told people, or shown people, what we do not told them to. You know, deliberately use us as such.

Speaker 2:

It's all about edge.

Speaker 1:

Personal branding now is becoming probably actually bigger than normal company branding. Like, if you look at all the advertising and stuff you see on TV now or even on Instagram, whatever it is, all of it is some kind of person with a huge personal brand doing that for a company. So even if it's Kendall Jenner doing some kind of clothing shoot or whatever it is even just product placement with your personal brand and you're bringing viewers in, you have that product there. Logan Paul, for example, he's obviously got a huge following. And then Prime, he just obviously got a huge following. And then Prime, he just has that everywhere that he is and the branding of him is then shown through that and it's just such a big market now, people following a person to get exposure to companies Massive, yeah.

Speaker 3:

And because people can relate to a person, it's very hard to relate to a brand. How do you be like?

Speaker 3:

oh yeah, that feels like me, it's very hard to do that, whereas you're like, oh, you know that person that I follow, they are in the same area as me or you know they're the same age as me. They have kids like I influence to. You know potentially buy things that they also use. You know, for girls it's like skincare and makeup and dresses and you know that sort of stuff. It's very easy for influencers to sell that stuff because you know we see each other in. You know we see ourselves in other people online.

Speaker 2:

And for personal brands or individuals who you know are kind of like they're in a good industry, let's say real estate, for example, and they're a bit nervous of just getting themselves out there, cause I know a lot of people are, um, what like what would you say? Cause obviously you've done it and you've done it well, because you've got a good following and you're pretty consistent as well, from what we can see. Like what would you?

Speaker 3:

what advice would you give them if they're wanting to do it? Someone asked a similar question. I was on a panel talking about social media recently and the first thing I blurted out, just without thinking I was like just get over yourself. And it is true, like honestly, just get over yourself. Like, okay, if you are nervous and you feel like you don't present well on camera, film yourself over and over again. Don't post it anywhere. Just get in the habit of filming yourself. Don't make your first video of yourself be the one that you post like do some practice. You know you don't um like, do a swimming race and the first time you're racing is the first time you're swimming. You train and you practice and you know, behind closed doors do all that and then you go to the race. So, um, yeah, if you're nervous, practice, but also no one will care as much as you do when you post something online like you'll pick yourself apart left, right and center. There's things that you'll notice that no one else will, and if you're adding value, people can't come for you.

Speaker 3:

I don't get a lot of hate because I actually don't post things that people can hate on. I post fact, I talk about education and I'm factual in my approach to what I put out. I'm not controversial, I don't put opinions out there. It's all really factual and so I actually don't get hate. People are worried of posting because of hate. It's like if you actually focus on the right thing to post, then you won't get hate. Just avoid it altogether. The right thing to post, then you won't get hate.

Speaker 1:

Just avoid it altogether. Oscar and I were actually with Ethan Donati a couple of weeks back and we saw a conversation between him and someone that was actually really eye-opening. It was a funny opinion. So he's like super introverted, obviously, yes, but he was talking to someone about why they weren't putting stuff out there and they just said oh, you know, I don't want to get judged. And this specific example was we're in a room full of people and he didn't want to hold the microphone and talk because he thought people would judge him. And Ethan was like but either way, like they're all thinking something right now anyway, like they're all judging you regardless of if you do something or don't do something. They're going to have thought you don't know their thoughts and it doesn't have any impact. So why do you actually care? And he was like oh yeah, true. And then I was just sitting there and I was thinking I am judging harder now for not doing it than I would have been if you just did it, because then we're thinking about it.

Speaker 1:

So yeah, just do it, yeah, just do it.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, it's that thing of inaction that actually makes it worse. Just do it. Just do it. Your life won't be over if you post a video that people don't like, you know yeah absolutely, and do you have any final tips?

Speaker 1:

It can be related to anything, anything finance-based, anything branding-based, business-based. Just a final tip for anyone out there, or a lesson that you've learned somewhere along the way that you think would be valuable to share.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, I think it's applicable across quite a few things, whether it is business, personal, brand or buying property or investing. The only thing people usually say is that they wish they did something sooner, like it's not usually when people do something for the first time that I go oh, I should have waited a bit longer, like most of the time it's like God, I wish I did this sooner. So just do it. Like, just go and do it. Stop sitting on your hands, stop making excuses or create hurdles for yourself.

Speaker 3:

Like the people who are most successful, the best measure of success, in my opinion, is the time between the idea and the execution of the idea. The shorter that time, the higher the success of that individual. Um, people who have great ideas and sit on them for the longest time, like that's just what are you doing that for, um? So, yeah, I'm really big on taking action. I think you know it's applicable to pretty much anything in life and I think if, um, you're sitting there going, oh yeah, maybe I should do that thing, like just go and do it, just go and do it, just go and do it. What's the worst that can happen?

Speaker 2:

Yeah, no, I love that. And for listeners out there who want to get in touch with you or follow you on Instagram or TikTok, what's the best way to connect with you online?

Speaker 3:

Yeah, for sure. I'm probably most active on TikTok these days in terms of like relevant property content. If you just search Emily Wallace, I'm sure I'll pop up, although I've been getting a lot of fake accounts recently Everyone's been telling me Emily there's this cat.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, so I'm not offering you crypto. It must mean you're doing a good job. Then, if people are making fake accounts, Well, I hope so.

Speaker 3:

Maybe that does mean something. But yeah, don't accept any crypto advice from me in your DMs. Apparently that's what they're doing. But anyway, if you search Emily Wallace across any socials, you'll find me and Wallace Advocates is the business. If you search Google, you'll see the team and myself and, yeah, happy to help if we can.

Speaker 2:

Awesome.

Speaker 1:

Beautiful, excellent. Well, thanks for your time. We appreciate it. It's worth something valuable out of that, so it's really helpful for them. Yeah, it's really helpful for them. Yeah, anyone that wants to talk to Emily reach out to her. You've got her access now. Or let us know and we can get you in touch as well.

Speaker 3:

Awesome. Thanks for today. It's been great to have a chat.

Speaker 2:

No problem, thanks, emily.

Speaker 1:

Pleasure. We hope you enjoyed the episode.

Speaker 2:

As always, we know exactly what to do Hit that follow button, subscribe whatever platform you listen to this podcast on. Also share it to friends, families, co-workers, whoever you think may benefit from it. But unfortunately it's the end and we'll see you next week.

People on this episode

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Oscar Don

Co-host
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Zeke Guenthroth

Co-host