Nathan Griffiths joined Sourced in 2020. Before joining the franchise, Nathan already had around 4-5 years of experience in the property market, when he completed 6 property projects, all of which were flips and refurbs.
Choosing the Property
The franchisee has been working at a company specialising in packaging since he finished school. His father, though, started investing in property when Nathan was young and transferred his passion to his son, who wanted to grasp the opportunity and start investing in property as soon as possible. So, Nathan started working on some small projects alongside his day job, and he then decided to scale his property portfolio and turn property into a business.
Why join Sourced Franchise
After being in property for a handful of years, Nathan wanted to move to larger and more profitable projects. This is why, he started looking at other options, trying to find a way to learn more about property and pursue his dream of investing in developments.
Nathan found Sourced while searching online and after watching one of our live webinars, he got in touch and ‘the rest is history’ as he admits with a smile. One of the reasons that made him join Sourced Franchise, is the access to funding. Our peer-to-peer lending platform, Sourced Capital, allows our franchisees to borrow up to 100% of the purchase price and the work costs of the project, making it a lot easier to invest in property with no big initial outlay. “The funding is a great platform to get started, so I jumped at the opportunity”, Nathan shares.
Nathan also mentioned the ongoing support we provide at Sourced, stating that “our support people are there should I need them for anything, and they are always at the end of the phone.”
The First Project with Sourced
After Nathan attended the induction training at Sourced HQ, he put a plan in place and started looking for his first project. He implemented a clever tactic he learned in the training course from our Franchise Director, Chris Kirkwood. The franchisee found an agent who introduced him to the vendor, who then showed him the property. Due to the state of the house, Nathan managed to seal the deal at a discounted price of £55,000.
He then estimated that he’d need £35,000 – £38,000 for the refurbishment. So, he got in contact with our funding team, Sourced Capital, and Nathan got a funding of £91,000. Our funding platform can fund up to 70% of the gross development value (GDV) of any profitable project, enabling our franchisee to borrow more than the purchase price. A surveyor also valued the property at £130,000, however, since that was before the recent boom, Nathan estimates that the GDV has increased between 10%-15%. After finishing and selling the property on the open market, the franchisee will get a profit of £40,000 – £45,000.
Why Flips?
Flips is a relatively easy strategy, especially for those with limited experience in the industry. Flips allow investors to generate good margins, without having to spend too much time on the projects. Also, with Sourced, there is the option of the funding platform, which helps franchisees to borrow more than the purchase price and as a result, they can spend more on the refurbishment of the property. “Ultimately I want to do developments, but you cannot run before you learn how to walk, so I thought to do one more flip with the Sourced platform, before moving to developments.” The franchisee confesses and continues “You can do a project like this by covering only the upfront costs with the platform, using little capital of your own. I always had to find the money for the deposit, money for renovation, and before starting this project, my capital was minimal so joining Sourced was the ideal plan and exactly what I needed.”
What Were the Challenges with this Project?
Nathan found the whole process to be challenging, mainly due to Covid-19. There were delays with the local authorities and the lead times for the materials and labour have increased due to the pandemic. The funding process was successfully finished in August, but the issues set Nathan 2 to 3 weeks back. “In terms of Sourced, they were there every step of the way, they assisted me when I needed them, and I definitely feel I learned a lot through this process that will allow me to streamline the next project.” Nathan says.
Long-Term Plan
Nathan plans to continue doing some flips and refurbs; however, his passion lies in developments. Once he sells the current project on the open market, Nathan wants to use the money for his next project, which he hopes to be a building plot. Since the house prices have increased this year, the franchisee doesn’t have something else in the pipeline, however he is always on the lookout and with the help of his support person, Nathan hopes to find his next project soon.
Who is Sourced Franchise for?
“Sourced Franchise is for anyone looking to invest in property”, Nathan shares. “There is a fantastic network of like-minded people, the HQ team is always on hand to help out and there are many initiatives and excellent training courses. The training that Sourced provides has broadened my horizons and I learned various ways to make money from property that I didn’t know.” Nathan admits with a laugh.
If you want to find out more about our successful franchisee stories, why not get in touch and our Franchise team will answer all your questions. To discover the benefits of joining Sourced Franchise, download your copy of our franchise prospectus today.
