Case Study: Investment Sense acts fast to help Balls2Marketing buy their first office

Balls 2 Marketing

Balls2Marketing , was set up by husband and wife team, Andy and Sarah Ball  to provide a practical and no-nonsense approach to marketing.

The business is extremely customer focused, indeed Andy says: “Paying attention to customer service pays dividends. It’s one of the most powerful business tools. It will bring you new sales, loyal customers and more profit.”

However, Balls2Marketing had no offices, which is where Investment Sense came in.

Initial thoughts

Andy initially approached Investment Sense as they had planned to buy an office later in the year and wanted to know how Andy’s pensions could help.

However, plans of a relaxing summer and an office purchase at some point in the autumn soon went out of the window when they saw a property which was to be included in a local auction and would make the perfect business premises for them.

The property, an old church hall, was located close to their home and was perfect for the needs of their expanding business.

Added complications

Because the property was to be sold via an auction, we knew we would have to act fast, Sarah Bray, Andy’s adviser at Investment Sense said: “Buying at auction adds in additional complications, the purchase has to be completed within 28 days of the auction, which means a lot of the work we would normally do after the agreement to purchase has been reached needed to be done before the auction.”

First things first

We started by discussing with Andy and Sarah how a property is bought in a SIPP, the rules that must be obeyed and also the advantages and disadvantages. Sarah also reviewed Andy’s existing pensions to confirm that he wasn’t giving up any valuable guarantees by transferring his existing plans into a SIPP.

The first thing Sarah did is identify the most appropriate SIPP for the purchase. Obviously Sarah wanted to choose a cost effective SIPP, although efficiency was just as important given the tight time frame.

Having listened to Andy’s requirements and researched the market Sarah identified Talbot & Muir’s Elite Retirement Account as the ideal SIPP for Andy’s needs. Sarah said: “Not only were their fees cost effective but having recently completed another purchase with them, which had similar time constraints, we were confident that Talbot & Muir would be able to complete the purchase in time.”

Once Sarah and Andy had agreed that Talbot & Muir were the right SIPP Sarah checked with Talbot & Muir to ensure that the property was acceptable to them, this included reviewing environmental reports. Sarah said: “It was important to check that the property was acceptable to the SIPP provider, if anything had gone wrong and the sale had not gone through Andy would have lost his 10% deposit, we obviously didn’t want that to happen.”

Once the necessary checks on the property were carried out Sarah arranged for the transfer of Andy’s existing plans into the SIPP where the funds were held in cash until they were needed.

Despite being unable to attend the auction in person Andy was successful with his bid, which gave us just 28 days to complete the purchase. Sarah liaised with Talbot & Muir and the appointed Solicitors to ensure that this deadline was met with a little time to spare.

Andy said: “We knew we’d made the right decision from the start. Sarah explained to us the advantages and disadvantages of buying a property in a SIPP. Having already found the property time was of the essence. Sarah identified the ideal SIPP provider quickly which meant we could bid at auction. Then we thought we’d be in for a nail biting wait. Nothing could be further from the truth. The money was there within just a couple of weeks and we could relax in the knowledge that we would complete within the 28 day deadline. Sarah made it very easy for us to make the initial decision – and managed the whole process for us. We’d be very happy to recommend her.”

Moving forward

Balls2Marketing now plans to renovate the property and then move the business to its new home, Andy said: “For us having an office is our commitment to the future of Balls2Marketing. It gives us the space we want and more. We have plenty of office space for ourselves and a superb meeting room as well as other offices that will attract other likeminded people. And it’s a superb investment and a great way to manage my pension.”

Sarah Bray, concluded: “Investment Sense are delighted to have been able to help Andy buy the property, working with an expanding local business is always exciting and we wish Balls2Marketing well in their new home.”

Next steps

If you would like to discuss buying your business premises or indeed any issues relating to your pension then do not hesitate to contact Sarah on 0115 933 8433 or email her at sarah.bray@investmentsense.co.uk