My Accountant, Broker and Buyer’s Agent Disagree—What Should I Do?

Your accountant warns about cash flow. Your broker says the borrowing works. Your buyer’s agent believes the property is an excellent opportunity. All three may be acting honestly, yet the advice appears to point in different directions.

This often happens because each adviser is answering a different question. The solution is not to choose the person whose answer you prefer. It is to identify the decision, align the facts and make the assumptions visible.

Why apparently conflicting advice happens

A broker may be answering, “Can a lender approve this application?” An accountant may be asking, “What will the property cost after tax and how should the transaction be recorded?” A buyer’s agent may be asking, “Does this property fit the acquisition brief and local market evidence?”

Those are all useful questions, but none answers the whole decision. A lender approval does not prove the investment is affordable. A tax deduction does not prove the property is suitable. A strong property assessment does not determine the correct owner or funding path.

Step 1: Write down the actual decision

Avoid a vague question such as “Is this a good property?” State the choice and deadline precisely:

• Should we proceed with this property at this price?
• Which purchaser should be named before the contract is signed?
• Can we fund the deposit without compromising the future home upgrade?
• What must be confirmed before the cooling-off or finance deadline?

A precise decision exposes which advice is relevant and what remains unresolved.

Step 2: Create one shared fact sheet

Advisers can reach different conclusions because they received different information. Prepare a short fact sheet with the proposed price, deposit source, purchaser, expected rent, loan amount, interest assumption, ongoing costs, existing liabilities, household income, cash buffer and important future plans.

Label estimates and identify their source. A selling agent’s rent estimate, a lender’s serviceability figure and your household budget should not be treated as though they are the same kind of evidence.

Step 3: Separate facts, assumptions and recommendations

For each adviser’s view, record:

• Facts: information supported by contracts, statements, legislation or verified records.
• Assumptions: rent, growth, vacancy, rates, expenses, income or future refinancing.
• Recommendation: what the adviser believes you should do within their scope.

Disagreement often sits in the assumptions rather than the professional analysis. One adviser may allow for a larger cash buffer, a higher interest rate or a shorter holding period.

Step 4: Ask each adviser to state their scope

Ask what the adviser has assessed, what they have not assessed and which other professional questions remain open. This is not confrontational. It prevents a comment from being interpreted as broader advice than intended.

For example, a broker may confirm that a loan structure is available without expressing an opinion on tax deductibility. An accountant may identify ownership issues without giving legal advice on a trust deed or contract. A buyer’s agent may recommend a property without assessing the household’s complete financial position.

Step 5: Test the decision under pressure

Compare the expected case with a reasonable downside. What happens if settlement costs are higher, the property is vacant, repairs arise, rates change or income falls? Which adviser’s recommendation changes when the assumptions change?

The purpose is not to manufacture a worst-case prediction. It is to identify the assumptions the decision cannot tolerate.

Step 6: Escalate the right unresolved question

Send tax treatment back to the accountant, credit and loan-product questions to the broker, property-selection evidence to the buyer’s agent and legal rights or contract terms to the solicitor. Do not ask one adviser to settle a disagreement outside their expertise.

If the remaining problem is prioritisation—understanding how the tax, ownership, debt and cash-flow considerations fit together—a focused consultation can help establish the next questions and sequence.

Red flags in a conflicted advice process

• An adviser dismisses another discipline without explaining the assumption or scope.
• The recommendation depends on one optimistic rent, growth or refinancing figure.
• No one can identify who receives a referral fee or commercial benefit.
• The purchaser or loan movements are changed without tax and legal review.
• You are encouraged to sign first and resolve important questions later.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

• ASIC Moneysmart — working with an adviser
• Consumer Affairs Victoria — property adviser roles