Property Mentor Programme - A Hugely Successful Property Auctions Week
Updated: 3 days ago
Historical case study originally published on 6 April 2025. The programme information below reflects the current published mentorship.
Property mentoring in practice
What should a property mentor help you do? Develop a clear buying plan, assess an opportunity properly and reach a decision you can explain. This auction week shows those skills being put into practice by members of our Property Auction Professional group.
If you are considering working with a mentor, explore the 12 month property mentorship programme or meet Dominic Farrell and read the experience behind his approach.
5 purchases before, during and after auction
In April 2025, our property mentor group, known as the Property Auction Professional programme, secured 5 lots through 1 auction:
2 purchases prior to auction.
1 purchase during the live auction.
2 purchases after auction.
There were 113 lots in the catalogue. The purchases our members secured included the following opportunities:
One property had been completely refurbished and was reported at the time to offer a gross rental yield of over 11%.
Another was described as significantly below market value, close to an area receiving substantial investment and requiring very little refurbishment.
A property with some issues to resolve was purchased for £70,000. At the time, an identical property 4 doors away was advertised for £120,000.
These are historical reports from April 2025. The £120,000 comparison was a neighbouring property's asking price, not a valuation or sale price of the £70,000 purchase. Gross yield excludes operating costs and acquisition expenditure. Each investment needs its own appraisal.
The greatest pleasure was seeing property mentor members ‘go it alone’ with the analysis and bidding, studying the legal packs and Special Conditions and getting their heads around office copy entries and searches. Many spend the day with me, viewing auction properties and immersing themselves in my world.
Most of the investors involved were beginners building a portfolio through auctions and other routes for distressed assets. We focused on the work behind the purchase: researching the area, testing the figures and understanding the legal and practical issues before committing.
The pleasure I get from seeing mentees progress is one of the reasons I do this work. At the time of this auction, members of the group came from the UK, Ireland, Germany, the US, South Africa, Italy, Sweden, Nigeria and Hong Kong. Their backgrounds included business, medicine, law and accountancy.
What a property mentor adds to the buying process
The result began well before the auction. A lower purchase price is only useful if the property, legal position, funding and intended exit work together. Mentoring helps you turn those separate questions into a buying decision.
Start with a clear investment brief
We begin with your available capital, experience, time and appetite for risk. Are you seeking rental income, a refurbishment project or a longer term portfolio? That brief determines the locations, property types and opportunities worth investigating.
Research the property and challenge the figures
Look beyond the guide price. Test comparable values, achievable rent, condition and likely expenditure. Include purchase costs, finance, works and ongoing expenses. A deal should still make sense when you allow for delays or a less favourable outcome.
Prepare the legal and funding questions
Learn to work through the auction legal pack, identify questions about title, leases and the Special Conditions of Sale, and brief your solicitor. Discuss the completion timetable and proposed funding with the appropriate finance specialist before you commit.
Choose when and how to buy
The 2 purchases before auction, 1 during bidding and 2 after auction illustrate why preparation matters across all 3 stages. Members learn to assess an offer, set a maximum bid and judge whether an unsold lot is still worth pursuing. Walking away is also a sound decision.
Develop the confidence to act independently
A useful mentorship should improve your judgement as well as your confidence. You learn to ask better questions, explain the figures and recognise when an opportunity does not fit your brief. The aim is to carry that process into your next purchase.
That remains the aim of the mentorship: to help you become a competent, disciplined and independent investor who can explain the opportunity, the risks and the proposed exit.
The experience behind your property mentorship
Dominic Farrell has been buying property since 1999 and working with distressed property since 2008. His experience includes investment, development, auction purchases and negotiations with receivers, alongside letting and property management through Tuna Fish Property.
Dominic leads the mentorship. Claire Farrell contributes property and construction law expertise, drawing on 25 years as a solicitor. Josh Lee, a CeMAP qualified mortgage and bridging finance specialist at The UK Adviser, brings the funding perspective. Transaction specific legal work and regulated finance advice are agreed separately with the relevant professional.
“He does this with credibility and confidence both for himself and his clients.” J. Khan, London. Published client feedback on the Distressed Assets mentorship page.
What the 12 month property mentorship includes
Individual guidance with Dominic on your goals, buying criteria and the opportunities you are assessing.
A structured 12 module framework, monthly seminars and practical deal reviews.
Live property viewings in Liverpool, where the team has local investment and management experience.
Educational input on property law, auction legal packs, mortgages and bridging finance.
The private Property Auction Professional Skool community, resources and session recordings.
Access to workshops during the mentorship and the agreed programme benefits, including 12 months of free management for your first qualifying property sourced in the North West.
Your spouse, family member or business partner can join with you at no extra mentorship fee under the agreed programme arrangements. The full scope, current fee, payment options and separate purchase or professional costs are explained before you join.
Property mentoring for investors across the UK and overseas
You do not have to live in Liverpool. Individual conversations and online sessions support investors based elsewhere, while practical group viewings take place locally. The research and buying principles can be applied across the UK, with local professional support where your proposed purchase requires it.
Discuss your property investment plans
Tell us what you want property to achieve, your starting budget and what is holding you back. We can discuss whether the Property Auction Professional Mentorship fits your circumstances.
